Nepal plane crash: Death toll rises to 70; handover of bodies begins

TIL Desk/National/Kathmandu/ Nepalese authorities on Tuesday started handing over to family members the bodies of those killed after Yeti Airlines’ aircraft with 72 people, including five Indians, crashed in a river gorge in the resort city of Pokhara, as the death toll rose to 70.

Two more persons are still missing and the search operation is continuing, according to the Nepal Army sources. As one more body was recovered from the accident site at Seti River gorge in Pokhara valley, on Monday night, the total number of confirmed dead has climbed to 70, the sources said.

The Yeti Airlines aircraft took off from Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan International Airport at 10:33 am on Sunday and crashed on the bank of the Seti River between the old airport and the new airport in Pokhara, minutes before landing.

Fifty-three Nepalese passengers and 15 foreign nationals, including 5 Indians, and four crew members were on board the Yeti Airlines aircraft when it crashed. Out of 70 dead bodies, 22 are being handed over to the family members after conducting post mortem on them, according to Yeti Airlines spokesperson Sudarshan Bartaula.