Mustang, 23 March: Eleven tourists have died due to drowning in the Himalayan district of Mustang in the past one year. Since April 2081 BS, nine foreign and two Nepali tourists have died due to drowning.
The highest number of Indian tourists died while visiting Muktinath Temple and Mustang, said Police Inspector Bishal Adhikari, Information Officer at the District Police Office. He said that among those who came to Mustang for Muktinath Darshan and sightseeing, five died in Waragung Muktishtetra-1 Muktinath, five in Gharpajhong-4 Jomsom and one in Thasang Rural Municipality-2 due to heatstroke. The tourists who died due to heatstroke are between 58 and 81 years of age.
According to the statistics of the District Police Office, two tourists died of heatstroke in Baisakh 2081(April/May 2024), one in Jestha(May/June), two in Asoj(June/July), five in Kartik and one in Poush(Dec/Jan). Police Inspector Adhikari informed that a 63-year-old American citizen was among those who died of heatstroke.
In 2080 BS, 17 people lost their lives due to heat stroke. Police Inspector Adhikari said that 11 foreigners and 6 Nepali citizens were among the deceased. The District Administration Office, security agencies, health offices, local levels, provincial hospitals and other concerned bodies have been conducting awareness programs, publicity and pamphlet distribution campaigns regarding the problem of heat stroke and its solutions. The provincial health office, Gharpajhong and Thasang rural municipalities have also been conducting wall painting and graffiti programs regarding the problem of heat stroke to alert tourists entering Mustang.
Tourists face the problem of dizziness when traveling from the flat areas of the valley to the high Himalayan region without taking a break. Especially, dizziness starts from an altitude of 3,800 meters above sea level. Senior citizens, physically disabled and tourists taking chronic medicine have been found to suffer from dizziness, informed Bhuwan Chhetri, in-charge of the District Traffic Office.
