Nepal plane crash: Two more bodies found, Yeti Airlines plane crash death toll rises to 70

The Nepal Police have found the body of two more passengers from the Yeti Airline aircraft that crashed on Sunday with 72 passengers onboard including the crew. 

The Nepal Police further revealed that there are still two more unaccounted-for bodies and that the death toll has increased to 70.

“Body of another passenger who was missing was found late this evening. The number of passengers unaccounted for now stands at 2. A total of 70 bodies have been recovered from the site", news agency ANI quoted Nepal Police. 

Rescue efforts to find four missing persons have since started in Nepal, according to DIG Shambhu Subedi of the Nepal Armed Police Force, who spoke to ANI.

The tragic Nepal crash

In a tragic incident, a Yeti Airlines passenger plane carrying 72 people, five of whom were Indian citizens, crashed into a river gorge on Sunday while making a landing in the tourist destination of Pokhara in central Nepal, killing at least 70 people.

“The ATR 72 Yeti airlines aircraft crashed between the old airport and the Pokhara International Airport,” Kathmandu Post on Sunday quoted Sudarshan Bartaula, a spokesperson of Yeti Airlines. 

Black box now handed to the civil aviation authority 

Moreover, the black box (a small machine on an aircraft that records the details of each flight and is useful for finding out the cause of a plane crash) of the Yeti Airlines aircraft was handed over by the Nepal Army to Civil Aviation Authority officials.

Following the incident, the Nepal Army also handed over the flight data recorder.

Yeti Airlines cancels regular flights 

Soon after the crash, Nepal’s Yeti Airlines said that regular flights on Monday would be canceled to mourn the loss of lives in the air crash.

In an official statement shared on Twitter, the airlines said, “In mourning for the passengers who lost their lives in the accident of Yeti Airlines 9N ANC ATR 72 500, we would like to inform you that all regular flights for January 16, 2023, have been canceled.”