Two major mining companies have been rocked after a fatal head-on early morning crash in Western Australia's remote Pilbara region.

Key points: One man is dead and three other people are injured following a collision in the remote Pilbara

One man is dead and three other people are injured following a collision in the remote Pilbara Emergency services were alerted to the outback road at about 2am on Tuesday

Emergency services were alerted to the outback road at about 2am on Tuesday One man has been flown to Perth with "multiple trauma injuries'

A BHP worker aged in his 30s was killed, and three Rio Tinto employees were injured on the outback road.

Emergency workers said they were alerted to the accident near Rio Tinto's Marandoo mine site just after 2am on Tuesday.

Major Crash Police from Perth have flown to the scene to investigate, the cause of which is still to be determined.

However, WA Police confirmed the two vehicles were travelling in opposite directions near Karijini Drive and the Tom Price-Paraburdoo Road when they collided.

The road, one of the major access points to the rest of the state for the inland communities of Tom Price and Paraburdoo, was closed for 12 hours, with drivers forced to find alternative routes, including using an unsealed road.

Rio Tinto confirmed three of its employees were involved. ( Supplied: Rio Tinto )

A BHP spokeswoman confirmed a staff member — who was not working at the time — died at the scene of the crash, about 150km from the company's Area C mine site.

"It is with great sadness that BHP can confirm the death of one of our employees as a result of an off-site vehicle incident in the early hours of this morning," she said.

"Details of the incident are still being established and WA Police are investigating.

"We are deeply saddened by this news and the welfare of the family of the deceased and the safety of our people are our highest priorities."

RFDS flight

Rio Tinto also confirmed three of its staff members were involved in the incident.

Those employees were taken to Tom Price Hospital by St John Ambulance officers around 4am.

One man has since been flown to Royal Perth Hospital with what the Royal Flying Doctor Service described as "multiple trauma injuries".

Police say the accident happened in the early hours of Tuesday morning on a remote Pilbara road. ( ABC Pilbara: Karen Michelmore (file photo) )

Police are yet to release any information about the man who was killed except to say he was in his 30s.

The crash comes just days before WA Police begin their Christmas road safety campaign.

So far this year, 158 people have died on the state's roads.

BHP has urged any staff affected by news of the accident to contact their employee assistance program for support.

The incident follows a traumatic year for the small community of Tom Price and its emergency services workers.

State Emergency Services and police spent days looking for Felicity Shadbolt after she disappeared while running near Mount Nameless in January.

They have also attended a drowning at Karijini National Park and numerous fatal crashes.

The community also rallied together when a classroom at the Tom Price Primary School was burnt down earlier this year.

And the family of Rio Tinto worker Kenny Heelan, who died during a night out in Tom Price two years ago, are still searching for answers.