RCMP Const. Chelsey Robinson was killed in a crash west of Edmonton early Monday. (RCMP)

A 25-year-old RCMP officer was killed Monday in a two-vehicle crash west of Edmonton.

The officer's marked cruiser and a transport truck collided just before 12:45 a.m. on Highway 16 at Range Road 15.

Const. Chelsey Alice Robinson of the Stony Plain detachment was alone in the car, looking for a suspected impaired driver along the highway.

Police believe the cruiser was struck on the side by the transport truck at the intersection. Robinson died in hospital from her injuries.

The truck was engulfed in flames after the crash, but the driver escaped the blaze, police said.

The truck driver, whose name has not been released, was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The driver was not the impaired individual Robinson was looking for.

A tractor-trailer that collided with an RCMP vehicle burst into flames early Monday morning. (Courtesy Dave Hughes)

Assistant Commissioner Peter Hourihan said the death of an on-duty officer always affects RCMP officers across the country.

"Oh it's very difficult, as you can probably tell in my voice," he said.

"It's so tragic when someone young dies this way. It's tragic for the family and the friends … and the police community is a large family because of the nature of the business and the dangers that we face, so we treat them as one of our own."

Robinson is from the Picture Butte area of Alberta. She had been a regular member of the RCMP for seven months. Before that, she worked with the RCMP forensic identification unit for a year and a half, Hourihan said.

Robinson had a bachelor of science in forensic biology from the University of Toronto.

Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach passed on his condolences to Robinson's family and friends.

"I was saddened to hear of the passing of Const. Chelsey Robinson," Stelmach said in a news release.

"The loss of one of our finest in red serge in the line of duty is a tragic event that is mourned by all Albertans. My thoughts and prayers go out to Robinson's family and friends and her colleagues in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police during this tragic time."

An investigation is underway, police said. Highway 16 was reopened to traffic by Monday afternoon.