Four people were electrocuted when a Mahindra Bolero car came into contact with a low-hanging electricity wire at Sewaro Chowk in Pathibhara area, Taplejung, on Monday. Two sustained injuries in the incident, said police.

The vehicle was en route to Pathibhara shrine when the tragic accident occurred. There were six people including the driver on board. The victims were part of a family from Lalitpur, who traveled to Taplejung for the pilgrimage.

Sabina Paudel Acharya, 45, from ward 10 of Lalitpur Metropolitan City, had come to Taplejung with her 10-year-old son Bhabimay Acharya, 16-year-old daughter Adhya Acharya and her elderly parents—Binod Paudel, aged 70, and Sarita Paudel, aged 69—from Bhadrapur Municipality-15 in Jhapa district.

According to Deputy Superintendent of Police Ravi Rawal, driver Durga Bhattarai, aged 42, a resident of ward 10 of Phungling Municipality, Adhya, Binod, and Sarita died in the incident. Sabina and Bhabimay were injured in the incident. The injured mother and son were airlifted to Kathmandu for treatment.

The family stayed at a hotel near the district headquarters in Phungling on Sunday evening. Sabina requested the hotel owner Sabin Baniya to arrange a taxi to take them to Kaflepati early the next morning. Baniya, who also drives a taxi, contacted Durga Bhattarai to take them. The plan was to visit the shrine early and return the same day.

Bhattarai arrived with the vehicle around 3 am and the group set off for Kaflepati at 3:30 am. Around the Sewaro Chowk area, the road was uneven and riddled with potholes. As Bhattarai attempted to manoeuver the vehicle past them, he unknowingly drove close to an electric pole with a live wire hanging down, likely brought down by a lightning strike the previous night.

The vehicle came into contact with the wire and the resulting electric shock ignited a fire. Another vehicle following them, carrying passengers including Janardan Bhandari from Bharatpur Municipality-4, Chitwan, witnessed the incident. Sabina's son, Bhabimay, who was injured but conscious, managed to signal the trailing vehicle. Passengers rushed to help and saw Sabina lying about 1.5 feet away from the burning vehicle. They pulled her to safety, but could not rescue the other four passengers trapped inside the burning vehicle.

The rescuers turned one of the passenger vehicles around and took Sabina and her son to the hospital in Phungling. While the boy appeared to be in stable condition, Sabina was unconscious. An ambulance, which had been en route to Suketar Airport, intercepted them and helped transport the victims to the hospital.

Sabina’s husband, a Kathmandu-based medical doctor, arranged for a helicopter to transport the injured to the capital. According to doctors at the Taplejung District Hospital, both Sabina and her son are now out of danger. Sabina is able to walk to the restroom on her own and her son’s condition is reported to be normal.

Several other electricity poles in the area also appear to be leaning and many wires seem to be dangling dangerously. The electricity authority is criticised for its failure to repair the utility poles and wires that may risk people.

Suresh Prasad Chaudhary, chief of Taplejung Distribution Center of Nepal Electricity Authority, said that the electricity wire likely fell due to a lightning strike, which may have damaged its pin. “We were unaware of the incident early in the morning,” he said.