China News Service, January 15 (Xinhua) According to Reuters, on the 15th local time, a passenger plane carrying 72 people from Nepal's Snowman Airlines from Kathmandu to Pokhara crashed.
Nepalese authorities said at least 68 people had been confirmed dead.
According to reports, this is the deadliest aircraft accident in the country in 30 years.
According to local television reports, rescuers were actively working around the damaged plane.
Parts of the ground near the crash site were charred and small flames could still be seen.
The crash was the deadliest in Nepal since 1992, according to the Nepal Aviation Safety Network database.
That year, an Airbus A300 of Pakistan International Airlines crashed into a hillside while approaching Kathmandu, killing all 167 people on board.
"Half of the plane fell on the hillside," said Arun Tamu, a local resident who arrived at the scene minutes after the plane crashed. "The other half fell into the canyon of the Seti River."
A witness said he saw the plane spin violently through the air after it attempted to land, before dropping nose-to-left before crashing into a canyon.
"The plane caught fire after it crashed and there was smoke everywhere."
Local police officials said it was difficult for rescuers to reach the scene, which is located in a canyon between two hills.
It is not yet clear what caused the plane to crash, and search and rescue efforts are still ongoing, with rescuers saying more bodies are expected to be found at the bottom of the canyon.
In the afternoon, Nepalese Prime Minister Prachanda held an emergency cabinet meeting and decided to set the 16th as a national day of mourning and set up a five-member investigation committee to investigate the air crash.