By DPA
Kathmandu : Nine people were killed when a tractor plunged off a mountain road in a remote part of western Nepal, the police and media said Wednesday.
The tractor was carrying 10 people when it crashed Tuesday evening near Kharibehani village in the Kalikot district, about 420 km west of Kathmandu.
The police said the tractor plummeted about 400 metres off a mountain highway, taking all but one of its occupants along with it. One person jumped off the tractor to save himself and was injured.
Police said the cause of the accident remained unclear, but media reports in Kathmandu said the tractor, which was travelling from Kalikot to the Surkhet district, might have experienced steering problems, leaving its driver unable to control it.
Kalikot is one of Nepal’s most remote districts with rudimentary road transport services. The district was only recently linked by road with the rest of the country, and people often use a variety of vehicles for transport.
Nepal has a notorious road safety record with the police saying hundreds of people are killed there each year in road accidents.
Police said reckless driving and disregard of safety precautions along with Nepal’s narrow and winding mountain highways are the main causes of accidents.