Two men were killed in the accident involving three trucks on Wednesday morning, about 25 kilometres east of Revelstoke, B.C. (RCMP)

A crash involving three tractor-trailers has killed two Calgary men and left a trail of twisted debris along a stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway east of Revelstoke, B.C.

The collision occurred around 2 a.m. PT Wednesday when two of the trucks slammed head on into each other, and a third piled into the wreckage, said Cpl. Rod Weibe of the Revelstoke RCMP.

"The debris field has been described to me as two kilometres of just parts," said Weibe.

"The debris field has been described to me as two kilometres of just parts." — Cpl. Rod Weibe of the Revelstoke RCMP

The Trans-Canada was shut down after the crash, but reopened around 11 a.m.

Witnesses reported the eastbound truck carrying the two Calgary men was driving erratically before it crossed the centre line, striking a westbound truck and killing the two men, said Weibe.

The victims have not been identified. but investigators say one was 29 years old and the other was 39. No one else was injured in the crash.

Highway needs upgrade: residents

Revelstoke residents say crashes such as the one early Wednesday are an all-too-common occurrence because the Trans-Canada Highway in that section was engineered to the standards of the 1960s and is badly in need of an upgrade.

Mark McKee, who used to head up a group that lobbied to have the road brought to modern standards, told CBC News the twisty stretch of highway between Revelstoke and Golden is the most dangerous in the province.

'When accidents like this happen you think, well, if we had a modern highway would this have been avoided? Maybe not, but we would have less fatalities in a year," said McKee.

He said his group has disbanded out of exhaustion after failing to get authorities to upgrade the road.