Six people were killed and 12 others injured when a passenger bus travelling from Nepalgunj to Kathmandu crashed at Daunne in Nawalparasi East early Saturday morning, police said.

The bus, with 17 passengers on board, crashed at around 4am in Binayi Tribeni Rural Municipality-2  in Nawalparasi East along the East-West Highway after the driver lost control. Police said the bus, with registration number Province 3-01-006 Kha 1553, plunged into a roadside drain after its brakes failed.

Four people, including a woman, died at the scene. The death toll later rose to six.

Five of the six victims have been identified as Nirjung Khatri, 50, of Bheri Ganga Municipality-3 in Jajarkot; Dipendra KC, 32, of Kohalpur Municipality-3 in Banke; Narendra Raj Giri, 65, of Swamikartik Rural Municipality in Bajura; Ekendra Raj Regmi, 55, of Kohalpur-10 in Banke; and Krish Kanaujiya, 22, of Nepalgunj Sub-Metropolitan City-7. Police said the sixth victim was an unidentified man believed to be around 40 to 42 years old.

The injured were taken to Madhyabindu Provincial Hospital in Danda and Bharatpur Hospital for treatment, according to police.