Kathmandu: The collapse of a church
building in eastern Nepal`s Sunsari district today killed at
least 24 people, including an Indian, and injured 63 others,
the police said.
The people had gathered in Dharan, some 400 kilometres
southeast of the capital, yesterday for a week-long Christian
conference, and many chose to sleep on top of a church
extension made of bamboo and tin roofing, the police said.
The convention was organised by the El-Shaddai Church,
an international Christian organisation with a base in the
northern Indian town of Darjeeling.
"The participants were preparing to sleep when the
wall collapsed. Most of the victims were on the ground floor
of the building," the police said.
Among the 24 killed were 17 women and four children,
officials said. The 63 people injured were taken to the nearby
B.P. Koirala medical college hospital, according to the
national news agency RSS.
One of the dead has been identified as 35-year-old
Neeru Rai from India. Some Indian nationals may be among the
injured as there were many participants from India, the police
said. However, no details about the identity of the injured
were available.
Bureau Report
