Two Israelis among 11 killed when Nepal tour bus plunges off road
Four Israelis among 52 hurt when bus flipped over and fell into ravine; 100 people reportedly packed onto bus from Kathmandu to Langtang park, including many on roof of vehicle.
At least 11 people, among them two Israeli women, were killed Friday when a tour bus traveling from Kathmandu to the Langtang national park in Nepal overturned, came off the road and plunged at least 200 meters into a ravine below.
An Israeli man missing after the crash has been located in a Nepalese hospital. Three other Israelis were injured in the crash; all are said to have sustained light to moderate injuries.
At least 52 people were said to have been hurt in the accident. The accident comes a week after four Israelis were among dozens of hikers killed in a freak storm on the Annapurna trek in Nepal.
It appears that at least 100 people were on the overcrowded bus, which plunged over the side of the road close to the start of the journey from the capital, en route to the national park. An initial investigation indicates that the bus flipped over because it had been packed with too many people. A number of people were also sitting on the roof of the vehicle when it came off the road.
Search and rescue teams rushed to the scene are to evacuate the injured. Those with serious injuries were evacauted to hospital in Kathmandu, while others were treated at hospitals in Trishuli and Nuwakot.
The Nepalese travel agency Swissa, which is popular with Israeli travelers, said that four Israelis had purchased tickets through them, but said other Israeli backpackers had apparently bought tickets through other companies. Swissa has sent a helicopter to the site of the crash.
The Foreign Ministry and the Israeli embassy in Nepal were monitoring the situation and reports from the scene, as is Israel's Magen David Adom rescue service. The Chabad shaliachs (emissaries) in Nepal, Rabbi Chezki and Rebbetzen Chani Lifshitz, were dispatched to the location.
