The RCMP has confirmed three people killed in a 10-vehicle crash in Alberta on Tuesday were from Saskatoon.

The crash sent black smoke billowing over the prairie fields between the hamlet of Chinook and the village of Cereal and killed two women — aged 52 and 69 — and a 54-year-old-man, all from Saskatoon. The victims' names have not been released.

The crash occurred around 4:30 p.m. CST in a construction zone. Three semi-trailers and seven passenger vehicles were involved. The RCMP could not confirm which vehicle or vehicles the victims were travelling in.

"One of the semi-trucks was hauling fuel and the fuel ignited, causing several vehicles to catch fire. A second semi was hauling butane," RCMP said in an emailed release on Tuesday.

Flames engulfed the scene. On top of the three people killed, 10 others were hurt, including two who were critically injured and transported to hospital by air ambulance.

A local evacuation order and emergency alert was issued in crash area as a precautionary measure due to the flammable nature of the material in the tanker truck. The order has been lifted and the highway has re-opened.

The RCMP says it is still investigating the crash and the collision analyst's report is still pending.

With files from CBC's Sarah Rieger and Robson Fletcher