Nine people were killed and 34 others were injured in a bus accident in Baitadi district on Thursday night.

The bus en route to Mahendranagar with 43 passengers onboard fell nearly 600 metres down the road at Khodpe in Patan Municipality, police said.

A police team led by DSP Narayan Prasad Adhikari had reached the spot soon after the accident. The injured passengers were rescued by locals and the security personnel on the same night.

Birendra Karki, the bus driver, who was receiving treatment at Maya Hospital in Dhangadhi, said the accident occurred after the steering wheel jammed at a narrow road bend.

“I could not turn the steering wheel towards the left and the bus overturned,” he said.

Some survivors, however, said that Karki was aware of the trouble with the bus because he had stopped the vehicle from time to time to check for the issue.

“The driver stopped and checked the vehicle for at least three times. We could tell something was wrong. We had even advised him to fix the problem first before continuing on with the journey, but he did not listen to us,” said Harka Bahadur Dhami, one of the passengers admitted at Dadeldhura Hospital.

Another survivor Ritesh Bhatta of Khochale in Baitadi said, “I had requested the driver to stop the vehicle but he insisted on moving ahead saying the bus was experiencing only minor problems. He told us not to panic.”

The police are investigating the cause of the accident, said DSP Adhikari.

“Our investigation is still in progress. It could be human error or a mechanical glitch.”

Bimala Kunwar Aidi of Dogadakedar lost her husband in the accident.

“My husband, our one and a half years old son and I started the journey from Saleni to my maternal home in Kanchanpur. It was almost 10pm. On the way, the bus lost control. I was knocked unconscious. When I came to my senses, my son was crying nearby. I grabbed him and searched for my husband. But, he was not there.”

Aidi and her baby are receiving treatment at Maya Metro Hospital in Dhangadhi.