FORT MCMURRAY — A woman has died in a head-on collision on Highway 63 north of Fort McMurray, Alta.
RCMP say the woman was the only occupant of a pickup truck that collided with a tanker truck.
The driver of the tanker has been taken to hospital with undetermined injuries.
RCMP say initial reports indicate the pickup lost control on slippery roads.
The tanker was carrying dangerous goods but remained upright and did not spill.
However, RCMP say the highway will remain closed until those goods are secured and the tanker is able to be transported safely from the scene, which is expected to take some time.
About 50 people have died since 2006 on the highway that links the Edmonton area to the oilsands region.
The province has promised more police officers to patrol the highway and has said it will install electric digital signs that will show how fast people are driving.
The government announced in 2006 it would begin twinning the 240-kilometre highway, but since then only a handful of kilometres south of Fort McMurray have been completed.
On Tuesday, the province announced it will be issuing tenders for grading of two more sections to be twinned by 2016.