2 Nepal road crashes leave at least 29 dead, 22 injured

A bus returning from a party crashed near the Nepalese capital on Tuesday killing at least 17 people and injuring 22 more, police said.

Police officer Chakra Raj Joshi said they were not sure why the bus bumped the side wall of the mountainous road but were investigating the cause.

The injured were rescued by local villagers with the help of police officers and soldiers who reached the crash site near Bethanchowk village, located about 30 miles east of the capital, Kathmandu.

Earlier on Monday, a vehicle carrying passengers coming from a wedding veered off a mountain highway in Nepal leaving 12 people dead. There were no survivors.

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The small passenger truck was over capacity when it rolled off the mountain road near Chedagad village, about 250 miles northwest of the capital, Kathmandu.

Police said the accident happened late Monday evening and by the time rescuers arrived at the scene, eight had already died. Three more died on the way to the hospital and one died later at the hospital.

After driving off the road, the vehicle rolled about 200 meters down the mountain slope.

Road crashes in mountainous Nepal are often blamed on poorly maintained roads and vehicles.