VANCOUVER - Mounties in Kamloops have arrested the owner of a pickup truck involved in a hit-and-run accident in their city early Sunday morning.

Two people died when a car and a pickup truck collided shortly before 1:40 a.m. on 1st Avenue near Battle Street in Kamloops.

When RCMP officers arrived at the scene, they found two occupants of the car already deceased. The other two occupants were taken to hospital, one with life-threatening injuries and the other with non-life threatening injuries.

Meanwhile, the driver of the pickup truck had already left the area, police said in a press release.

In a subsequent release, police said the truck's "registered owner" had been located and arrested, but they did not say whether he was behind the wheel at the time of the crash. Indeed, police said the arrested man's involvement with the collision is still under investigation.

Cpl. Jodi Shelkie, media relations officer for Kamloops RCMP, told CTV News Vancouver the driver fled on foot.

Shelkie said 1st Avenue is a street with both commercial businesses and private residences, and police are checking with neighbours to see if any of them caught the incident on a surveillance camera.

In their release announcing the arrest, Kamloops RCMP said they were still looking for witnesses to the collision to contact them, and added that they were specifically interested in speaking to a woman "who was on foot at the scene and left shortly after the incident occurred."

Those with information are asked to call Kamloops RCMP at 250-828-3000.

While she wasn't present for the collision, Shelkie said the extensive damage to the vehicles at the scene and the severity of the injuries that resulted from it indicate how terrible the crash was.

"It must've been a horrendous impact," she said. "Speed, at some point, must have been involved."

The police investigation is ongoing, and it's too soon to say what sorts of charges will result from the incident, Shelkie said.

She added that police expect 1st Avenue to be closed for most of the day and drivers should avoid the area. 

With files from CTV News Vancouver's Jen St. Denis and Nafeesa Karim