One person has died and others have been injured in a stunning crash in Charlemagne, just east of Montreal Sunday afternoon.

The crash involved a tanker truck, a transport truck and four cars.

The SQ provincial police had no immediate information about the state of the other truck driver but the other motorists involved suffered only minor injuries.

Sebastien Ringuette lives near Highway 640, and he and his family fled when they heard the explosion.

"It was terrible. The fuel gushed out of the tanker and the fire kept growing. It was a disaster," said Ringuette.

Authorities closed Highway 640 after the tanker truck caught fire and left a spectacular plume of smoke rising above Repentigny at around 3:45 p.m. Sunday.

The truck caught fire after a major collision near the A640, in Charlemagne off the eastern tip of the island of Montreal.

The highway was closed in both directions following the disaster and Transport Quebec recommended that motorists avoid the sector.

Daniel Drouin said he has seen many crashes in 30 years of living in the neighbourhood, but he has no doubt this was the worst.

"We were lucky there wasn't any wind because the flames were so close to us," said Drouin.

He added that most of the crashes he's witnessed have been caused by drivers going too fast.

Transport Quebec re-opened most of the roadways early Monday morning, but the ramp from the 640 East to Highway 40 East remains closed.

The heat of the blaze damaged the roadway below.