24 killed as church collapses in Nepal

At least 24 people, including an Indian national, were killed and 62 others injured when a
church building collapsed in Sunsari district in eastern Nepal, police said today.

The incident occurred last night when the roof of the three-story makeshift church in Dharan collapsed during a religious conference which was being attended by over 1500 people, according to the national news agency RSS.

Among the 24 killed were 17 women and four children, police said. The Indian national, who died in the incident, was identified as 35-year-old Neeru Rai. The devotees were preparing to sleep when the wall of the building which was made of bamboo collapsed. Most of the victims were on the ground floor of the building, police said.

The rescue teams were rushed to the spot and the injured were taken to B P Koirala Institute of Health Science and Hospital in Dharan, around 400 kilometres east of capital. The army has been drafted in to assist with the rescue effort, police said.

There might be many people from India attending the conference being held in the bordering district Sunsari, according to police officials. In a separate incident, two bothers identified as Arun Mukhiya and Kailash Mukhiya were killed when a stray bomb exploded in Fetabelauna village of Bara district in southern Nepal today, police said.