A 21-year-old man died and two others were injured in a two-car collision on the A913 between Newburgh and Abernethy.
The road was closed until the early afternoon following the crash between a Volkswagen Golf and a Toyota Hilux at 6.55am.
Police, ambulance and fire and rescue services all attended the scene.
The male driver of the red Volkswagen, who is understood to be from Newburgh, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Both occupants of the green Toyota were injured and were taken to Perth Royal Infirmary.
The force of impact was so severe that emergency services had to retrieve vehicle debris from nearby trees.
A police spokesperson said: “Inquiries into the full circumstances surrounding this collision are ongoing.
“Anyone with information that can assist officers with their investigation is asked to contact police immediately.”
A spokesperson for Scottish Fire and Rescue said: “We were called to a two-car collision on the Newburgh to Abernethy road this morning and were told one person was trapped. A male driver died at the scene.”
Last night local councillor David MacDiarmid paid tribute to the victim.
He said: “My heartfelt sympathies go to his family they must be totally devastated.
“My heart goes out to them because I don’t know how I would cope with a situation like this it must be horrific to have police at your door to tell you your loved one is dead.”
Locals in Abernethy told how police arrived and closed the road to Newburgh.
Marie Gordon, 48, said: “I saw them putting the accident signs out and realised it must have been a bad one.
“I went out for a walk with the dog and spoke to one of the officers who told me it was serious.”
Landlord of The Ship Inn on the town’s High Street paid tribute to the dead man, who he said lived locally but wasn’t originally from the area.
“He was from England and hadn’t lived here long but he occasionally came in for a drink and a game of pool and got on well with all the regulars.
“He was a pleasant guy and we got on well as he was a Newcastle fan like myself.
“I last saw him on Sunday he was in the pub talking about how he’d had a bad injury at his work with his finger.”