Police say alcohol may have been a factor in a fatal crash on the QE2, just north of Red Deer, Monday afternoon.

The RCMP say a Nissan was heading southbound on the busy highway, around 4:00PM, when its driver tried to pass a cement truck from a merge lane. They believe the driver lost control, slid into the northbound lanes and crashed into a car.

Police say the driver of the Nissan was killed. Two others were flown to hospitals in Edmonton and Calgary with undisclosed injuries.

The names of the victims have not yet been released. Traffic had to be diverted around the collision for more than an hour.