Three people die in jeep accident in Kalikot district

Kathmandu, January 17: Three people were killed when a jeep carrying road construction workers plunged off the road in Shubhakalika Rural Municipality–4 of Kalikot district.

The accident occurred in Salleri area along the Seri–Pantadi road after the jeep, bearing registration number Bhe 1 Ja 2898, rolled backwards and fell into a cliff. All three occupants died on the spot, police said.

District Police Chief Him Bahadur Khatri said the deceased included two excavator operators—28-year-old Shankar Kathayat of Dailekh and Tekendra Shahi of Achham—and the jeep’s assistant driver, Navaraj Shahi of Shubhakalika–2, Kalikot. The victims were engaged in road construction work in the area.

Police said the wreckage was found about 500 metres below the road on the bank of the Tila River. The bodies were retrieved from the cliff and preparations are underway to take them to the district headquarters for post-mortem examination.

The jeep driver has contacted police, but further questioning is yet to be carried out. A team comprising the Chief District Officer, district police and armed police personnel reached the site after receiving information about the accident.