KOTA KINABALU: Two foreign tourists were killed and five others hurt after the tour van they were travelling in was involved in a collision with a trailer lorry in Sabah’s east coast Semporna district on Monday (March 11).

       Sabah Fire and Rescue Department operations centre officer Riki Mohan Singh Ramday said the dead were identified as Lee Siong Huat, 60, a Singaporean and Vietnam national Ngo Trinh Buu Dung, 40.

       He said the duo were killed on the spot following the mishap at about 4pm at KM20 Jalan Semporna-Tawau.

       He added the injured victims included an 11-year-old girl from Singapore.

       He said they were alerted of the incident at 4:03pm and that a team and an Emergency Medical Response Services (EMRS) unit were subsequently rushed to the location.

       "The accident involved a trailer lorry and a tourist minibus, which later crashed to the roadside following the collision," Riki said in a statement.

       There were seven people on the bus, including the 42-year-old driver, he added.

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       He said medical officers had confirmed the deceased victims had died at the scene, adding the remains were then handed over to the police for the next course of action.

       "The three men (pulled out from the bus) who were seriously injured were rushed to the Semporna district hospital on the EMRS vehicle.

       "The child and another man who suffered light injuries were sent to the hospital in the Health Ministry’s ambulance," Riki said.

       He said the trailer lorry driver escaped unhurt, adding they ended the operation at 5.32pm.