UPDATE: Off-duty N.J. police officer killed in crash with truck on Route 1

One person was killed and another seriously hurt when a car collided with a truck on Routes 1&9 in Linden early Monday, forcing an extended closure of the busy road for an investigation, authorities said.

The crash occurred about 2:15 a.m. when a car traveling north on Route 1 collided with the tractor-trailer cab also headed north at Pleasant Street, according to Linden police Lt. Christopher Guenther.

Two people in the car were taken to University Hospital in Newark. One was pronounced dead and the other was hospitalized in serious condition, Guenther said.

The truck driver was not injured.

"I can confirm that one of the persons involved in this crash has passed. It is still very early in the investigation and that is all of the information I can share at this point," Guenther said in an email.

Routes 1&9 were closed in both directions between Avenue C and West Grand Avenue. The closure was expected to last several hours, Guenther said.

Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.