Nepal bus blast leaves at least 38 dead

MAOIST insurgents were being blamed yesterday for detonating a powerful landmine beneath a crowded bus in rural Nepal, killing at least 38 people and wounding dozens more.

The bus was travelling on a rural road near the southern village of Badarmude when it was ripped apart by the explosion, army officials said.

Thirty-eight people died and 71 others were wounded, the official said.

A local hospital was overwhelmed with patients and didn’t have enough doctors to perform surgeries.

Some of the injured were flown by army helicopters to Nepalese capital Kathmandu and were being treated at a military hospital.

“There was a small bang and then our bus was thrown in the air. The bus was ripped into pieces and many people were killed,” said Khum Bahadur Gurung, 62, who was in hospital with injuries to his legs.

The bus was crossing a wooden bridge when the mine was detonated.

The bus was thrown up in the air and landed beside the highway on the banks of the Mude river.

Mr Gurung said parts of the bus were scattered across the river bank, and many of the bodies had been charred.

Buses in the poor area are usually crowded, with most people having to stand in the aisles or even travel on the roof.

The army blamed the blast on Maoist rebels who have been fighting since 1996 to abolish Nepal’s constitutional monarchy and set up a communist state. They provided no details, however.