For decades, Melven Jones couldn’t talk about what happened to him as a child. He didn’t even remember it.
2 buses carrying more than 50 people were swept into a river by a landslide in Nepal
A landslide swept two passenger buses carrying more than 50 people into a swollen river in central Nepal early Friday, while continuous rain and more landslides were making rescue efforts difficult.
Three survivors apparently swam to safety, but rescuers by late morning had not found any trace of the buses, which likely were submerged and swept downstream in the Trishuli River. Nepal's rivers generally are fast-flowing due to the mountainous terrain. Heavy monsoon downpours in the past few days have swollen the waterways and turned their waters murky brown, making it even more difficult to see the wreckage.
Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane told parliament 51 passengers were missing and more than 500 rescue personnel have been assigned to the search operation.
Elsewhere in the country, 17 people have died and three more people were injured due to landslides in different districts in the past 24 hours, he said.
The buses were on the key highway connecting the capital to southern parts of Nepal when they were swept away around 3 a.m. near Simaltal, about 120 kilometres (75 miles) west of Kathmandu.
More landslides blocked routes to the area in several places, government administrator Khima Nanada Bhusal said. Additional rescuers and security forces were sent to help with the rescue efforts. Police and army personnel were searching using rubber rafts. Divers with scuba gear were also dispatched, according to the Chitwan district police.
The three survivors were being treated in the hospital, Bhusal said, adding that they reportedly jumped out of the bus and swam to the banks, where locals found them and took them to a nearby hospital.
A third bus was hit by another landslide on Friday morning a short distance away on the same highway. Bhusal said the driver was killed but it was not clear if there were any other casualties.
Nepal's Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal said he was saddened by the news and expressed concern over recent flooding and landslides. He added that several government agencies were searching for the missing, in a post on the social media platform X.
On Thursday night, a landslide buried a hut and killed a family of seven near the resort town of Pokhara. The family were asleep when the landslide crushed their hut and damaged three more houses nearby.
Monsoon season brings heavy rains to Nepal from June to September, often triggering landslides in the mountainous Himalayan country.
Meanwhile, the government has also imposed a ban on passengers buses travelling at night in the areas where weather warnings have been issued, according to the Home Ministry.
___
AP contributor Yunish Gurung contributed from Pokhara, Nepal.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trudeau says Hezbollah leader caused 'immense suffering,' calls for ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon
Lebanon's Hezbollah group confirmed on Saturday that its leader and one of its founders, Hassan Nasrallah, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut the previous day
The CEO of the Ottawa Mission is responding to controversial comments made this week by Premier Doug Ford about those living in homeless encampments that received swift blowback from advocates.
At least 56 dead and millions without power after Helene's deadly march across U.S. southeast
Massive rains from powerful Hurricane Helene left people stranded, without shelter and awaiting rescue Saturday, as the cleanup began from a tempest that killed at least 56 people, caused widespread destruction across the U.S. Southeast and left millions without power.
Canada announces $10 million for humanitarian assistance in Lebanon
Canada is contributing $10 million for humanitarian assistance for civilians in Lebanon amid the escalating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.
Why Will Ferrell wanted a doc about his friendship with a trans woman to release before the U.S. election
Will Ferrell said in an interview with Variety that it was important for him to release his documentary, 'Will and Harper,' before the U.S. election so people could have conversations about trans people.
They hit it off on vacation but then he went silent. So she decided to pick up the phone
When a few weeks passed and Nana Prempeh still hadn’t heard from the guy she met on vacation, she turned to her friends for advice.
A strike by grain terminal workers at the Port of Metro Vancouver has ended, their employer announced Friday night.
SpaceX launches rescue mission for 2 NASA astronauts who are stuck in space until next year
SpaceX launched a rescue mission for the two stuck astronauts at the International Space Station on Saturday, sending up a downsized crew to bring them home but not until next year.
Local Spotlight
A tale about a taxicab hauling gold and sinking through the ice on Larder Lake, Ont., in December 1937 has captivated a man from that town for decades.
When a group of B.C. filmmakers set out on a small fishing boat near Powell River last week, they hoped to capture some video for a documentary on humpback whales. What happened next blew their minds.
A pizza chain in Edmonton claims to have the world's largest deliverable pizza.
Sarah McLachlan is returning to her hometown of Halifax in November.
Wayne MacKay is still playing basketball twice at Mount Allison University at 87 years old.
A man from a small rural Alberta town is making music that makes people laugh.
An Indigenous artist has a buyer-beware warning ahead of Sept. 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
Police are looking to the public for help after thieves broke into a Lethbridge ice creamery, stealing from the store.
An ordinary day on the job delivering mail in East Elmwood quickly turned dramatic for Canada Post letter carrier Jared Plourde. A woman on his route was calling out in distress.