Several people have died in an incident when a truck rolled into a street party in the town of Nieuw Beijerland in the south of the Netherlands.

Police said on Saturday it was investigating the incident, which happened at about 7 pm, around 30 kilometres south of Rotterdam.

"At some point a truck went off the road and crashed into the party," police spokesperson Elianne Mastwijk told local broadcaster Rijnmond.

Dutch broadcaster NOS said at least three people died.

Police said they were investigating what caused the truck to leave the road in the village of Nieuw-Beijerland just south of Rotterdam and career down the side of a dike.

Pictures published by Rijnmond and other local media websites showed a heavy truck from a Spanish transport company at the bottom of a small dyke, amid broken picnic tables.

The truck's driver, who was not injured, has been arrested and taken into custody by the police, the NOS national broadcaster said.

Source: agencies