HUMLA, June 23: A team of divers who had reached Humla to find the remains of the jeep that plunged into Karnali River on Tuesday returned back empty-handed on Friday.
The jeep (Lu 1 Ja 7166) heading toward Yangchuma of Kharpunath from the district headquarters Simikot fell some 20 meters into the river at Belrukh area of Humla. The accident site is around 24 kilometers from Simikot.
Due to the heavy flow of water in the river, the team of divers was unable to find any remnants of the jeep and eventually had to give up their quest.
Driver goes missing as jeep plunges into Karnali river
Chief District Officer Dholakraj Dhakal stated that after the specialized team of divers from the Armed Police Force Disaster Management Training Institute searched up to one kilometer downstream from the accident site but in vain.
Dhakal further claimed that the families of the deceased have already performed the last rites of the members who went missing after the accident.
Chairperson of Kharpunath Rural Municipality, Karna Bahadur Rawal expressed sadness that the team of expert divers was unable to find the whereabouts of the victims.
“We had high hopes from the search operation conducted by the team of divers. However, our hopes have dimmed now,” said Rawal.
The search operation was led by Inspector Laxman Basnet of the Armed Police Force. According to Basnet, a team of 10 divers returned back on a Nepal Army helicopter on Friday after they could not find the remains of the jeep.
