Five people were killed in a fiery collision along a stretch of highway in British Columbia's Interior Thursday morning.

The crash occurred when a semi-truck collided with an SUV near McLeese Lake along Highway 97, said RCMP Cpl. Madonna Saunderson.

A family of five in the SUV was killed on impact. The driver of the tractor trailer was taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

"We do know that the SUV crossed the centre line and collided with the semi," Saunderson said.

"The crash resulted in a fire, we're not sure what sparked the fire. We do know that both vehicles were engulfed in flames."

The crash occurred around 9:30 a.m., and the fire has hindered the speed of investigation.

Saunderson said a witness told police the driver of the SUV did not appear to be driving erratically or irresponsibly.

The family in the SUV was headed to Vancouver to watch a tennis match. One of the people in the vehicle worked for a local newspaper.

McLeese Lake is located about three hours drive south of Prince George, and the crash site is a remote area. According to reports, the fire burned for hours before emergency crews extinguished it.

Saunderson said that the road was dry and clear of snow at the time of the crash.

Local resident Brenda Tomporowski noted that the rural community doesn't have a fire department, and she said it may have taken police 40 minutes to get to the scene.

"I know they've been trying to get a volunteer fire department here but I don't know what's going on," she told The Canadian Press.

With a report from CTV's B.C. Bureau Chief Sarah Galashan