KINABATANGAN: A woman being transported for treatment died while 11 others were injured in a collision involving a passenger van and an ambulance at Jalan Paris 1 here on Monday.
District Police Chief Supt Ravi Duraisamy said the deceased was a female stroke patient who was being transferred from Lahad Datu Hospital to Queen Elizabeth I Hospital, Kota Kinabalu.
“Initial investigations revealed the accident occurred at about 9.40am near Kampung Paris 1 when both vehicles were negotiating a bend,” he said.
The Toyota ambulance was travelling from Lahad Datu Hospital with the patient, accompanied by a doctor, a nurse, and a second driver, when it collided head-on with a Foton View van carrying seven passengers.
“The passenger van is believed to have veered into the opposite lane before the crash,” Ravi said.
The patient in the ambulance died at the scene and her death was confirmed by a doctor from Kinabatangan Hospital. Both drivers and 10 other passengers sustained injuries and were treated at the hospital’s Green Zone.
Ravi said the case is being investigated under Section 41(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987.
Meanwhile, Kinabatangan Fire and Rescue Station chief Hairi Otuh said they received a distress call at 10.25am and deployed five firefighters with one engine to the scene, about 30km from the station.
“The team arrived at 11.00am and the operation was concluded at 11.50am,” he said.
