Accidents

Yesterday evening a very bad bus accident occurred nearby.  Unfortunately this is not as uncommon here as it may be in other countries.  Besides numerous pedestrians,

animals,

tight squeezes,

difficult roads,

and a LOT of motorcycles on the roads,

there are the twists and turns of the Himalayas--

which can cause drivers to take chances when passing.  Overcrowded and overloaded buses are also the norm,

which can topple over, or fall into a ditch,

 when the circumstances are "right." 

Yesterday a bus was going up a steep road when three motorcycles got in the way.  While trying to avoid them, the bus toppled over and rolled over four times down into a ravine and landed 100 meters down.  Apparently the people struggled up to the road where passing buses picked them up and brought them to our hospital and to the hospital in the neighboring city.  We received 55 patients at once!  Everyone jumped into action and even those not on call came immediately.  Ramon and his team had just finished an emergency surgery so they were already on hand.  He had to go with an ambulance to take a patient to Kathmandu.  There he found a neurosurgeon who also wasn't on call, but had come in anyway in case he was needed when he heard about the accident on the news.  Unfortunately five people died.  What a tragedy.  Situations like these cause devastating hardships here in a land where there's no insurance and many people live from day to day.  Besides the usual difficulties of losing a loved one, the economic impact could be a financial crisis for the family.  At that point the best way we can help is by supporting ADRA (Adventist Development and Relief Agency) and praying.     

Thank you to those of you praying for us and for the work of the hospital and for the lovely people of Nepal!  Have a nice day (and be careful on the road)!