New method to be adopted to find missing buses in Trishuli

Published On: July 15, 2024 03:53 PM NPT By: Republica | @RepublicaNepal

KATHMANDU, July 15: Search continues for the two ill-fated buses and the passengers on them that fell into the Trishuli River due to a landslide on Friday at Simaltal along the Narayanghat-Mugling road section. However, new methods will be implemented to search for the missing buses from today onwards.

The police have said that all possible measures are being taken in the search. Recently, with the cooperation of the private sector, state-of-the-art Sonar Camera Technology has been utilized.

Nepal Police Spokesperson Dan Bahadur Karki said that search operations using the new equipment have been ongoing. On Friday morning, near Simaltal along the Narayanghat-Mugling road section, a landslide swept two buses into the Trishuli River. The search for 65 passengers aboard these buses commenced that morning. As of now, only 11 bodies have been recovered. Other passengers and the buses have not been found yet.

A team of the Armed Police Force (APF) along with the Nepali Army and Nepali Police, equipped with bamboo poles, air drones, water drones, magnets, binoculars, telescopes, anchor hooks, and other equipment, had been searching relentlessly for the missing buses.

On Sunday, the Home Secretary and chiefs of APF and Nepal Police reached the accident site where the search was underway. The technical team went from Kathmandu to Simaltal along with the tools which were then handed over to the Nepali Army.

Currently, 40 trained personnel from the APF are carrying out the search operation. They are also using rafts and motorboats to locate the buses in the river.

How does the new method work?

According to the Assistant Chief District Officer of Chitwan, advanced equipment has been added to motorboats to make the search operation easier.

According to an expert, this equipment can also conduct surveys of underwater topography. It generates a specific type of sound and when this sound hits any object, based on the reflection of that sound, it can determine the shape of the object.

For the search of the two buses and over three dozen passengers missing in the Trishuli River, the government has requested assistance from India and Bangladesh.