Search and rescue teams recovered five bodies as of Sunday, while around 50 others remain missing, after a landslide triggered by monsoon rains in Nepal swept two buses full of passengers into the swollen Trisuli River on Friday.

“A body was found about 25 kilometers from the crash site,” police spokesman Dan Bahadur Karki told AFP.

A total of five victims have been found, explained Mr. Karki. Among them was a national of neighboring India.

The accident happened on a stretch of road connecting the towns of Narayangat and Mugling, about a hundred kilometers west of the capital Kathmandu, early Friday morning at around 03:30 (local time; 00:45 Greek time).

More than 300 rescuers, including divers, are searching the river for the two buses and their passengers, said Kumar Newpan, another Nepalese police officer.

Some groups, moving in boats, use special equipment in the research in the rapid waters of the river.

Grieving relatives wait on the banks in a state of shock.

“It has been three days that I have been here and the bodies of my grandparents have not been found yet,” said Khurshid Alam, 23.

About 50 people are still missing, Himananda Bhusal, an official in Chitwan district, said on Saturday, downgrading the number given by authorities on Friday to 63.

Three passengers, who were saved by jumping from the buses as they were swept away by the landslide, are out of danger. One was released from the hospital.

Strong currents, made worse by last week’s torrential rains, are making business difficult.

Indra Dev Yadav, head of local authorities in Chitwan, pointed out that the situation is difficult. The river “is deep and narrow” and the water level high, he explained.

Road accidents are relatively common in this Himalayan state, mainly due to the poor condition of the road network and the fact that many vehicles are not properly maintained.

According to official government data, almost 2,400 people died in accidents on Nepal’s roads in the 12 months to April.

The roads are said to become even more dangerous during the monsoon, as rainfall causes many landslides and floods.

Scientists point out that climate change is making the monsoon, which occurs in southern Asia from June to September, even stronger and more irregular.