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Nine Choppers Carrying Foreigners Make Emergency Landings in Nepal

New Delhi (Sputnik): Several helicopters carrying stranded foreign trekkers from Nepal’s Lukla town had to make emergency landings at various locations due to zero visibility on Tuesday.
Sputnik

The nine choppers were returning from Lukla located in Nepal's Solukhumbu District, the gateway to the Mount Everest region, a media report said.

Inclement weather has gripped Nepal's Kathmandu Valley.

Of the nine helicopters which took off Tuesday morning from the Tenzing–Hillary Airport (aka Lukla Airport) with tourists onboard, four made emergency landings at Basu in Kavrepalanchok district, the Airlines Operators Association Nepal spokesperson Yograj Kandel told daily The Kathmandu Post.

The other five landed at Rosi Khola, Dhulikhel, Ramechhap towns, Sindhuli district and Solukhumbu district respectively, he added.

The spokesperson said the emergency landings were necessitated due to zero visibility caused by dense fog in the region.

"More than 300 foreign trekkers have been stranded in Lukla airport since Saturday as the airlines' service has come to a halt due to bad weather."

A decision was taken to send the helicopters to Lukla after the weather improved in the morning, but soon weather conditions started deteriorating, forcing the helicopters to make the emergency landings, he added.

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