Baitadi jeep plunge: Death toll reaches six

The death toll in a jeep accident in Baitadi has reached six. The latest identified victim in the accident is Khem Singh Bhandari, 50, of Panceshwor Rural Municipality-6.

 A jeep (Se 1 Ja 183) carrying mourners skidded off the road and fell approximately 500 meters down from the road at around 2:45 pm as the driver was trying to gear back the jeep to pass through a narrow mode near Ganamesheor Temple of Rodidewal in Pancheshwor-6 on Tuesday killing six including the jeep driver and injuring four others, police said.

While the driver Tej Bahadur Bohara breathed his last on the way to hospital, other victims, Jit Singh Bhandari, 50, Dambar Singh Bhandari, 30, Himmat Bhandari, 27, and Dipak Bhandari, 40, all from Pancheshwor-6, died on the spot.

The mourners were participating in a funeral procession for Gobinda Singh Bhandari, a ward member of Pancheshwor-6 who died after being struck by lightning on Monday night. The jeep was carrying 10 mourners. Of the injured, three are said to be in serious condition and have been referred to Nawajiban Hospital in Dhangadhi and one is receiving treatment at the district hospital, Baitadi, said the police