What happened here
1 / 3 A microbus travelling from Kathmandu to Sarlahi plunged down a slope at Chisapani Gadhi in Bhimphedi Rural Municipality-6, Makwanpur district, Nepal, early on Thursday 12 November 2026, at about 5.45 am according to the police. The first reports gave 10 dead and five hurt. Later reports give 14 dead, the driver among them, and six hurt: PTI says the Chief District Officer's office confirmed 14, and The Rising Nepal, Nepalnews and OnlineKhabar agree, while the Kathmandu Post's afternoon update says 13. OnlineKhabar says 13 of the dead were from one tol in Sarlahi district, and six of the dead were of one family. Reports put the fall at about 300, 500 or 700 metres. The number aboard is not settled: the later toll adds up to 20 people, more than the 14 or 15 first reported. A joint team of the Armed Police Force, the Nepali Army and the Nepal Police carried out the rescue. No cause has been given and the dead have not been named.
Quick answers
What happened at Chisapani Gadhi in Makwanpur?
A microbus travelling from Kathmandu to Sarlahi left the road at Chisapani Gadhi in Bhimphedi on the morning of 12 November 2026 and fell down a slope. Fourteen people died and six were hurt, according to the latest reports; the first reports said 10 and five.
How many people died in the Makwanpur microbus accident?
Fourteen, the driver among them, according to PTI citing the Chief District Officer's office, and The Rising Nepal, Nepalnews and OnlineKhabar. The Kathmandu Post's afternoon update says 13. The first reports, which gave 10, listed three women, five men and two girls. Six people were hurt.
What caused the Bhimphedi crash?
Not stated. None of the reports we opened gives a cause, and PTI says it is yet to be established. We do not guess one.
Why do reports give different times and depths?
The district police and PTI say about 5.45 am, and the APF spokesperson, quoted by OnlineKhabar, said about 6.10 am. The fall is about 300 metres in PTI, about 500 in Khabarhub, Nepalnews, Desh Sanchar and The Rising Nepal, and about 700 in OnlineKhabar and the Kathmandu Post. We give the range.
How many people were in the microbus?
Not settled. The first reports said 15 including the driver, or 14 in Desh Sanchar, but the later toll of 14 dead and six hurt adds up to 20, and none of the reports we opened explains the difference.
Why did the toll rise from 10 to 14?
The reports we opened do not say. The first reports on the morning of 12 November gave 10 dead, and later ones give 14 or, in one update, 13. We cannot tell whether the extra deaths happened in hospital, whether more bodies were recovered or whether the first count was wrong.
Who were the passengers?
OnlineKhabar says most were vegetable and fruit traders from one tol in Sarlahi district returning from Kathmandu for Chhath, and that six of the dead were of one family. We give no names.
Who carried out the rescue?
An APF team from the Bhimphedi Security Base, led by a deputy superintendent, with the Nepali Army and the Nepal Police, according to Nepalnews and OnlineKhabar.
How can I travel safely on a hill road?
Start after sunrise where you can, avoid overloaded vehicles, wear a seat belt on every seat that has one, ask for a low gear on descents and keep children on the inner side of the seat.
What should I do if a vehicle goes over a hill edge near me?
Call the police and ambulance, keep others back from a loose slope and wait for trained rescuers. In India call 112.
What happened
The Makwanpur microbus crash on the morning of Thursday 12 November 2026 killed 14 people and hurt six. A microbus travelling from Kathmandu to Sarlahi left the road at Chisapani Gadhi, in Bhimphedi Rural Municipality-6 of Makwanpur district, and went down a slope that the reports put at about 300, 500 or 700 metres. The first reports, written within hours of the crash, gave 10 dead and five hurt, and this page first carried those figures. Later reports from PTI, The Rising Nepal, Nepalnews and OnlineKhabar give 14 dead and six hurt, and PTI says the Chief District Officer’s office confirmed 14, with the driver among them. The Kathmandu Post’s afternoon update says 13 dead. The police breakdown of the first 10 dead, three women, five men and two girls, has not been updated in the reports we opened.
A joint team of the Armed Police Force (APF), led by a deputy superintendent from the Bhimphedi Security Base, the Nepali Army and the Nepal Police went to the spot for the rescue, according to Nepalnews and OnlineKhabar. Nepalnews’s report is datelined Hetauda, the district headquarters. The reports we opened were written within hours of the crash. They do not say what made the vehicle leave the road, they do not name the dead, and they do not say whether anyone was wearing a seat belt. Those details may come out later.
This page does not name anyone, and it does not use a registration number. It sets out what the reports agree on, where they differ, and what is useful for a family that travels on a hill road at dawn, in Nepal or in the Indian hills. The toll was revised on 13 November 2026 from reports published on 12 November; we found no cause, no inquiry finding and no official statement on relief.
What the reports say
- When: Thursday 12 November 2026, early morning: about 5.45 am according to the Makwanpur District Police Office (Khabarhub, Nepalnews) and Desh Sanchar; about 6.10 am according to the APF spokesperson (OnlineKhabar)
- Where: Chisapani Gadhi, Bhimphedi Rural Municipality-6, Makwanpur district, Bagmati Province, on the Bhimphedi-Kulekhani road section
- Vehicle: A microbus; OnlineKhabar, Nepalnews and the Kathmandu Post call it an electric microbus, and one early Nepalnews text called it a Hiace. It was going from Kathmandu to Sarlahi, in the plains of Madhesh Province; OnlineKhabar says a family member hired it for the trip at about 2 am
- The fall: About 300 metres (PTI); about 500 metres (Khabarhub, Nepalnews, Desh Sanchar, The Rising Nepal); about 700 metres (OnlineKhabar, Kathmandu Post)
- Dead: 14, the driver among them (PTI citing the Chief District Officer’s office; The Rising Nepal; Nepalnews; OnlineKhabar). The first reports said 10: three women, five men and two girls (Khabarhub, Nepalnews). The Kathmandu Post’s afternoon update says 13. OnlineKhabar says 13 of the dead were from one tol in Sarlahi district and the driver from another Sarlahi municipality, and The Rising Nepal and OnlineKhabar say six were of one family
- Injured: Six (PTI; The Rising Nepal; Nepalnews; OnlineKhabar; Kathmandu Post). The first reports said five: three men and two boys. Three had been discharged by the afternoon; two children and one adult were referred to hospitals in Kathmandu and Bharatpur (Kathmandu Post; Nepalnews)
- People aboard: Not settled. The first reports said 15 including the driver (Khabarhub, Nepalnews, OnlineKhabar) or 14 (Desh Sanchar); 14 dead and six hurt adds up to 20
- Rescue: APF team from the Bhimphedi Security Base led by a deputy superintendent, with the Nepali Army and the Nepal Police (Nepalnews, OnlineKhabar)
- Cause: Not stated in any report we opened; PTI says it is yet to be established, and Nepalnews says authorities have launched an investigation
- Passengers: OnlineKhabar says most were vegetable and fruit traders going home from Kathmandu to Sarlahi for the Chhath festival
- Identities: Not released in the reports we opened, and not used here
Where reports differ and what we do not know
- The toll: The first reports, from the morning of 12 November, gave 10 dead and five hurt (Khabarhub, OnlineKhabar, Nepalnews, Desh Sanchar, the Kathmandu Post’s first update). Later reports give 14 dead and six hurt (PTI, The Rising Nepal, Nepalnews, OnlineKhabar), and the Kathmandu Post’s afternoon update gives 13 dead. None of the reports we opened says how the count rose: a hospital death, a later recovery or a recount. We use 14 and the first 10 as history. One Nepalnews report appears to list more people in its body than in its headline, so we use the headline figure.
- Time of the crash: The Makwanpur District Police Office (Khabarhub, Nepalnews), PTI, the Kathmandu Post and Desh Sanchar say about 5.45 am. OnlineKhabar says about 6.10 am, quoting the APF spokesperson. The two agencies may be using different times for the call and the crash. We say early morning, about 5.45 to 6.10 am.
- How far the vehicle fell: PTI says about 300 metres, four reports say about 500 metres and OnlineKhabar and the Kathmandu Post say about 700 metres. A slope of that length is not a single drop; it is the distance down the hillside. We give the range.
- How many were aboard: The first reports said 15 including the driver, which matched 10 dead and five hurt, and Desh Sanchar said 14. With 14 dead and six hurt the people accounted for come to 20, and no report explains the difference, so we do not give a figure for the number aboard.
- What the vehicle was: Most reports say microbus; OnlineKhabar, Nepalnews and the Kathmandu Post call it an electric microbus, and an early Nepalnews text said Hiace. Khabarhub’s headline says microbus but its body says pickup truck, which looks to us like a slip. We say microbus.
- Early headline: An early Nepalnews headline said 10 people were critically injured. Its later reports say 10 dead and five hurt, then 14 dead and six hurt. We use the latest.
- Who is quoted: Khabarhub and Nepalnews quote the Makwanpur District Police Office; OnlineKhabar quotes the APF spokesperson. They are different agencies, and we do not name any officer.
What this crash teaches
There are two ways to read a hill-road crash like this one. The first is to look for a cause, and none is given yet. The second is to look at what makes a fall of several hundred metres so hard to survive and so hard to reach. Reaching people on a slope of that length is slow work: rescuers have to climb down, carry people up and wait for ambulances on a narrow road.
For a family planning a trip on a hill road, a few habits help whatever the cause turns out to be. Start after the sun is up if you can; the crash here was about 5.45 to 6.10 am, but reports do not say it was dark or foggy, so we do not blame the hour. Wear a seat belt on every seat where one is fitted. Do not travel in an overloaded vehicle. Ask the driver to take the descents in a low gear and not to race to make up time. Sit away from the window edge if you can, and keep children on the inner side of the seat. Our guide on night bus crashes in India and South Asia and our page on safety in buses, trains and metros have more on how to check a vehicle before you board.
After a crash, the first hour counts. Anyone who reaches the scene should call the police and the ambulance, keep others from climbing down a loose slope, and wait for trained rescuers; our guide to the golden hour after a road crash explains why. In India the number is 112; in Nepal, keep the local police and ambulance numbers saved on your phone before you travel.
- The microbus leaves the road at Chisapani Gadhi in Bhimphedi and falls down a slope, given as about 500 metres by the district police and about 700 metres by the APF spokesperson in the first reports; PTI later says about 300 metres
- An APF team from the Bhimphedi Security Base, led by a deputy superintendent, goes to the site with the Nepali Army and the Nepal Police (Nepalnews; OnlineKhabar)
- OnlineKhabar publishes: 10 dead, five hurt, all 15 aboard involved in the crash
- Khabarhub publishes: 10 dead (three women, five men, two girls) and five hurt (three men, two boys)
- Nepalnews updates its early headline of 10 critically injured to 10 killed and five injured
- The Kathmandu Post's first update gives 10 dead, all at the scene, and five hurt treated at a hospital in Hetauda
- The toll is raised: The Rising Nepal and Nepalnews report 14 dead and six hurt, while the Kathmandu Post's update at 3.48 pm says 13 dead, 11 identified and six hurt, three of them already discharged
- PTI reports at least 14 dead, the driver among them, and six hurt in a hospital in Hetauda; the Chief District Officer's office confirms the toll and the fall is given as about 300 metres
- OnlineKhabar reports that 13 of the dead were from one tol in Sarlahi district and the driver from another Sarlahi municipality, that six were of one family, and that a young child among the hurt was referred to a Kathmandu hospital
- No cause, no inquiry finding and no official statement on relief found in the reports we opened; none of them says how the count went from 10 to 14
Why consequences escalated
- A microbus going from Kathmandu to Sarlahi left the road at Chisapani Gadhi in Bhimphedi and fell down a slope that reports put at about 300, 500 or 700 metres.
- The toll rose during the day: the first reports said 10 dead and five hurt, later reports from PTI, The Rising Nepal, Nepalnews and OnlineKhabar say 14 dead and six hurt, and the Kathmandu Post's afternoon update says 13 dead.
- OnlineKhabar says 13 of the dead were from one tol in Sarlahi district and the driver from another Sarlahi municipality, and that they were going home for Chhath; The Rising Nepal and OnlineKhabar say six of the dead were of one family.
- The APF, the Nepali Army and the Nepal Police took part in the rescue.
- No cause has been stated, the dead are not named in the reports we opened, and none of the reports says how the count went from 10 to 14.
Failures and risk multipliers
- No investigation finding has been published. The reports leave these questions open:
- What made the microbus leave the road: speed, a mechanical fault, driver fatigue, the road surface or something else.
- Whether the road edge had a parapet or guard wall at that bend and what condition it was in.
- How many seats the vehicle had and whether it was overloaded.
- Whether seat belts were fitted and used.
- These are open questions, not findings of fault.
Actions that reduce risk
- Before a hill-road trip: check that the vehicle is not overloaded, that tyres and brakes have been looked at, and that the driver has slept; start after sunrise where you can.
- On the road: wear a seat belt on every seat that has one, ask the driver to use a low gear on descents, and speak up if the driving feels unsafe.
- Sit with children on the inner side of the seat, away from the window edge.
- After a crash: call the police and ambulance, keep others from climbing down a loose slope, and wait for trained rescuers. In India call 112.
- For road authorities: check parapets and guard walls on the steepest bends and publish what the inquiry finds.
Leave a comment