A man has died on the A9 after his van collided with a tanker carrying 3,000 gallons of whisky from a Speyside distillery.
The motorist was killed on the notorious Inverness to Perth road at Blair Atholl in the early hours of yesterday morning.
The driver of the lorry, from McPherson Ltd of Aberlour, was uninjured in the crash.
The lorry was travelling south on a delivery at the time of the accident.
Fire crews were called to the scene just after 2.30am yesterday with police officers and paramedics also attending.
The road was closed in both directions around the village for more than 10 hours causing widespread disruption.
A diversion through Blair Atholl was put in place but lorries were kept off this route by police, leading to further delays for heavy vehicles.
The route was re-opened by after it was cleared of debris and road accident investigators had left the scene.
Yesterday McPherson Ltd of Aberlour, a company which specialises in the transport of bulk spirits, declined to comment on the incident.
A police spokeswoman said: “We can confirm that a man has died following a road traffic collision on the A9 at Blairatholl, involving an articulated lorry and a van.
“Investigations are at a very early stage, and no further information is available at this time.
“We would appeal for anyone who witnessed the collision to contact police on 101 or speak to an officer.”
The A9 is known as one of Scotland’s most dangerous stretches of road.
In March a two-lorry crash on a single-carriageway section of the road north of Kingussie killed 50-year-old Highland truck driver Alexander Fraser.
Road safety on the A9 is under close scrutiny following the launch of a trial to increase the speed limit for HGVs from 40mph to 50mph on single-carriageway sections of the route.
Average-speed cameras on single-carriageway sections between Inverness and Perth went “live” last October.