Three women from Edmonton are dead after a stolen truck and minivan crashed east of Lloydminster, Saskatchewan RCMP say.

Emergency crews responded to the collision just after 3 a.m. Friday on Highway 16, about five kilometres outside Lloydminster.

A heavy-duty, flat-deck truck reported stolen the previous evening collided with the van in the eastbound lane, according to RCMP. Two women, 35 and 37 years old, were confirmed dead at the scene and a third woman, 53, died later.

All three were occupants of the van, Mounties said in a news release. A fourth occupant, a 32-year-old woman also from Edmonton, was airlifted to hospital. Police do not yet know her condition.

The person or persons in the truck, which was stolen from the Lloydminster region, fled the scene before police arrived.

One suspect, a 26-year-old man, was taken into custody in the area. Police are still working to determine if more suspects were involved.

Prior to the collision, officers had been investigating a complaint of multiple stolen vehicles, including the truck, during Friday’s early morning hours. According to RCMP, officers had located two of the vehicles near the junction of Highway 303 and Highway 16 at approximately 2:30 a.m.

Shortly after, the stolen truck was observed driving in the area. RCMP attempted a traffic stop, but the suspect fled the scene. Officers pursued the truck and notified the monitoring supervisor, who terminated the pursuit upon assessment.

“The pursuit was terminated in accordance with the RCMP’s Emergency Vehicle Operation policy,” said Curtis Zablocki, assistant commissioner with the RCMP “F” division commanding officer. “Given that pursuits pose a serious risk to the public, the RCMP developed national policy that outlines the requirements for initiating a pursuit, the ongoing monitoring and assessing, and the decision to continue or terminate a pursuit.”

RCMP said the collision occurred approximately 35 minutes after the pursuit was terminated. On behalf of Saskatchewan RCMP, Zablocki offered his condolences to the families impacted by the incident.

--- CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story stated the two women who died on scene were 25 and 27 years old. RCMP have since issued a correction, stating the women were 35 and 37.