So far, four bodies of missing people from the Simaltar bus accident have been found at different locations on the banks of the Narayani River

Another body was found on Sunday morning as the search and rescue operation resumed at 7am today to determine the whereabouts of the missing buses and other passengers

KATHMANDU, July 14: The bodies of four passengers were found who were missing after two buses were swept into the Trishuli River by a sudden landslide.

While three bodies were found at different locations on Saturday, another body was found near Golaghat on Sunday morning. The identity of the body found on Sunday morning is yet to be confirmed.

The Chitwan District Administration Office said the body was discovered on the bank of Narayani river near Golaghat in Bharatpur Metropolitan City-28 of Chitwan, 50 km downstream from the Simaltal bus accident site.

Earlier, the bodies of two men were found on the banks of Narayani river at Gairi in Gaindakot Municipality-7 around 3:30 pm on Friday, another body was found on Saturday morning. The identities of all three bodies found in Trishuli river after the bus accident have been revealed. Among them are two Nepali nationals and one Indian national.

Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Bed Bahadur Poudel of Nawalpur District Police Office said the bodies were found on the banks of the Narayani River.

Local residents alerted police about the first body of a man aged around 25. Shortly afterwards, another body, aged around 20, was found about 10 metres away from the first body, said DSP Poudel.

One of the bodies was identified as Ramit Kushar Majhi, 19, a resident of Sarlahi’s Barhathwa Municipality Ward-3. His father, Rabindra Kushar Majhi, confirmed the identity. Ramit was a passenger in the Ganpati bus travelling from Kathmandu to Gaur in Rautahat. The second body was identified as Bikas Pariyar, 22. His body was identified by his brother Bijay Pariyar. Bikas was travelling in a bus (Ba Pra 03-006 B 1516) travelling from Birgunj to Kathmandu.

Early Saturday morning, another male body was found in the Narayani river in Bharatpur Metropolitan City-28, Chitwan, along with several documents. Based on these documents, the deceased was identified as Indian national Rishi Paul Shah. A Global IME Bank bank card in the name of Rishi Paul Shah was found in the wallet. His brother, Satya Pal Shah, confirmed the identity and stated that Rishi Paul Shah, 28, lived and worked in Nepal.

Rishi was originally from Rajmunuwa, Motihari, India and had travelled to Gaur by bus from Jorpati in Kathmandu. The district administration office in Chitwan confirmed the man’s identity through a ration card found with the body.

The Armed Forces Police (APF) used water drones and sonar technology to search for the missing bus and passengers. DSP Shailendra Thapa, deputy spokesperson of the APF, said the search operation was resumed on Saturday morning using a sonar camera through a pipeline inspection. He added that the bodies found on the banks of the Narayani river could be passengers of the buses that were washed into the Trishuli river at Simaltal on Friday.

“A team comprising nine divers from the Armed Police Force has been mobilised to search for the missing buses,” said DSP Thapa. According to the Home Ministry, 28 divers, including those from the Nepal Army, have been mobilised and additional search operations have been carried out by personnel from the Nepal Army and Nepal Police.

There were reportedly around 65 people on board the buses. Three of them were able to save themselves by swimming, and three more were found dead on Saturday. Two of the dead have been identified, one has not yet been identified. There is no trace of other passengers or the buses at the scene of the accident.

Two buses that went missing in the Trishuli river after they were swept away by a landslide have not been found yet. The search operation was suspended on Saturday evening and resumed at 7 am on Sunday, Chitwan deputy district commissioner Khimanand Bhusal said. “So far, the bodies of three persons have been found. We have suspended the search as it is already evening. The search was resumed at 7 am today,” Bhusal told Republica.

The Nepal Army’s Disaster Management Unit stationed at Rasauli and trained security personnel from the Armed Police Force’s Kurintar Disaster Management Training School have been searching the area using available technology, but no further progress has been made so far. The search for the two luxury buses that plunged into the Trishuli river began today using magnets.

On Friday morning, a landslide swept away the bus (Ba Pra 03-006 B 1516) travelling from Birgunj to Kathmandu and another bus (Ba Pra 03-011 B 2595) travelling to Kathmandu from Gaur into the Trishuli River at Simaltal along Narayanghat-Mugling Road in Bharatpur Municipal-29, Chitwan.

With contributions from Republica’s correspondent Basanta Dhungana in Chitwan and RSS reports.