One man killed in Alaska Highway collision near Rancheria, Yukon

RCMP say one man was killed is a collision that closed the Alaska Highway near Rancheria, Yukon, for more than 12 hours on Wednesday.

Police say the accident involved a Ford Edge SUV and a tractor-trailer that appear to have collided, about 320 kilometres east of Whitehorse. A witness called police around 4 p.m. Wednesday to report the accident.

RCMP say the male driver of the SUV was found dead when they arrived on the scene. The driver of the transport truck suffered minor injuries and was sent to hospital in Watson Lake.

The name of the deceased man has not yet been released.

Police say they closed the highway in both directions at around 5:30 p.m., because the tractor-trailer was blocking the road. Blockades were set up approximately 250 kilometres away from the accident, in both directions, as there is no available detour around the crash site.   

Investigators were on site overnight and the highway re-opened to traffic at about 7 a.m. Thursday. 

Police are still trying to determine the cause of the accident. The Yukon Coroner's Service is also investigating.