Seven people were killed when an ambulance collided head-on with a truck in Haripur of Sunsari district around midnight on Saturday.

According to the Provincial Traffic Police Office, all the victims died on the spot. The Udayapur-bound ambulance (Ko 1 Cha 9364) collided with a truck (Na 2 Kha 9082) that was heading east along the East-West Highway.

The incident occurred when the ambulance was returning to Udayapur with Shivamaya Rai, 85, from the Biratnagar-based Golden Hospital. The family members were taking the critically ill Shivamaya home to Triyuga in Udayapur district after the doctors said that her treatment was not possible.

Shivamaya had been taken to Biratnagar six days ago when she suffered from high blood pressure among other health complications.

The deceased have been identified as Shivamaya, her son Tula Bahadur Rai, grandsons Durgadhan Rai, Tekendra Rai, nephew Dinesh Rai and son-in-law Uddhav Rai and ambulance driver Rajesh Sunuwar.

The truck driver is on the run after the accident. Deputy Superintendent of Police in Sunsari Binod Sharma said the search is on to nab the absconding truck driver. “We think the accident happened due to poor visibility caused by dense fog in the area,” he said.

The story has been updated.