24 killed in church collapse in Nepal

Shirish B Pradhan

Kathmandu, Sept 30 (PTI) At least 24 people, including
an Indian national, were killed and 62 others injured when a
church building collapsed in Sunsari district in eastern
Nepal, police said Wednesday.

The incident occurred Tuesday night when the roof of
the three-story makeshift church in Dharan collapsed during a
religious conference which was being attended by over 1500
people, according to the national news agency RSS.

Among the 24 killed were 17 women and four children,
police said. The Indian national, who died in the incident,
was identified as 35-year-old Neeru Rai.

The devotees were preparing to sleep when the wall of
the building which was made of bamboo collapsed. Most of the
victims were on the ground floor of the building, police said.

The rescue teams were rushed to the spot and the
injured were taken to B P Koirala Institute of Health Science
and Hospital in Dharan, around 400 kilometres east of capital.

The army has been drafted in to assist with the rescue
effort, police said.

There might be many people from India attending the
conference being held in the bordering district Sunsari,
according to police officials.

In a separate incident, two bothers identified as
Arun Mukhiya and Kailash Mukhiya were killed when a stray bomb
exploded in Fetabelauna village of Bara district in southern
Nepal Wednesday, police said. PTI SBP
ANU