Bad weather continues to affect search efforts

KATHMANDU: MAY. 30 – Bad weather condition has continued to affect the search efforts for those missing in the Tara Air aircraft crash at Sanosware of Thasang Rural Municipality-2 in Mustang district. Geographical difficulties, rain and fogs have made the search efforts difficult, said the district administration office, Mustang.

So far, bodies of 14 passengers were recovered and the search for others was underway, said the administrative officer at the office, Devendra Raj Pandey.

“The transportation of the collected bodies to Kowang by helicopter and the search for the missing ones has been affected by bad weather.”

The collection of the bodies stuck in the cliffs has taken place with the help of the ropes set up by security personnel, said a local resident Indra Singh Sherchan from the incident site. The identity of the recovered bodies has yet to be established, he said. The incident site is over 4,000 meters above sea level. Around 100 security personnel and local people have been mobilised for the search.

The Twin Otter aircraft of Tara Air with 22 people including three crew members onboard took off at 9:55 am from Pokhara for Jomsom and lost contact with the air control in Jomsom at 10:07 am.

Being affected by bad weather conditions, the plane later turned through the Dhaulagiri and Manapathi Mountain towards Pokhara instead of flying to Jomsom said local people.

The passengers included 12 Nepali people, four Indians and two Germans, according to the Tara Air.