"Thankfully the driver of the truck appears to be uninjured," Mr Merritt said.
The truck had been carrying flowers.
A Fire Service spokesperson earlier said the passenger had been trapped in the car and firefighters were working to free them.
The collision occurred on a section of road where a railway crossing is.
Tauranga police officer Nigel Ramsden said the cause of the accident was not known, but did not rule out speed, alcohol or drugs.
A Whakamarama man, who did not want to be identified, said he hadn't seen a crash as bad as this for several years.
He had lived at the property for 43 years and although he had seen a number of serious crashes, he had never seen a fatality.
A reporter at the scene said traffic was being diverted through a neighbouring farm property, as the crash scene had been blocked off.
Police urged motorists to avoid the area as delays were expected.
Police serious crash unit investigators were at the scene.
The crash follows the death of a French man who was killed when the car he was travelling in collided with a truck on State Highway 2 near Omokoroa Rd, Whakamarama.