DADHELDHURA: Eighteen persons were killed and 25 were injured when a bus heading to Doti from Dadeldhura met with an accident in Amargadhi Municipality, Dadeldhura, on Dr KI Singh Highway, on Thursday evening.

According to Dadeldhura District Police Office Deputy Superintendent of Police Dambar Kumar KC, 11 passengers died on the spot, while seven breathed their last undergoing treatment at Dadeldhura Sub-regional Hospital.

The deceased are yet to be identified. “Twenty-one persons have been rescued from the accident site. They are undergoing treatment at Dadeldhura Sub-regional Hospital. Condition of nine of them is critical,” said DSP KC.

The bus was carrying people returning to Doti from Dadeldhura’s Ugratara temple. It fell some 150 metres off the road into the Raduwaskhola. Personnel of Nepali Army, Nepal Police and Armed Police Force were carrying out rescue work.