The 57-year-old man from Queensland was the driver of the car carrier that slammed into the back of a semi trailer and B-Double truck that had collided head on at Black Range.

All three vehicles were engulfed in flames. One of the trucks was carrying household products, including aerosol cans, while another was transporting wood.

The two men killed haven't been formally identified while the surviving driver continues to receive treatment for the fractures and significant burns he sustained to his body and airways.

The ensuing fire was so severe that the Western Highway remained closed for close to 24 hours as crews worked to clear the wreckage.

Members of the Disaster Victim Identification team assisted with efforts to remove the bodies.

The crash inferno badly damaged the road surface, surrounding infrastructure and bush and sparked a grassfire on the property of Anthony Martin.

Mr Martin said it wasn't the first time he had witnessed a crash on the stretch of highway that links Melbourne with Adelaide, but that last Wednesday night's was definitely the worst.

"I was in the bathroom getting ready for bed when I heard this almighty crash and I knew from the sound alone it was more than just a car crash," he said.

"As soon as I got to the door I could see a ball of flame at least 40 metres long and 25 metres high. I got about halfway from the house to the scene before I began to feel the heat. It was fairly intense."

Emergency services arrived shortly after but were forced back by the flames and minor explosions that continued well into Thursday morning.

"The bangs and flames just continued. I've never seen anything like it in my life," Mr Martin said.

"I have been telling people it was like something out of one of those action movies, because it was, except this time it was sobering because it was real, not a mock-up."

Mr Martin said in the 45 years he has lived at the property he has witnessed several crashes, but nothing that compared to this one.

"Maybe they need to look at duplicating this section of the road on its own because there have been other crashes nearby," he said.

Northern Grampians Shire Mayor, Cr Kevin Erwin, who is also the chairman of the Western Highway Action Committee will today meet with the State Transport Minister Terry Mulder to appeal for funding to make commencement of the Buangor to Stawell duplication possible.

Cr Erwin has indicated that if both the federal and state governments can settle on a funding arrangement by next year's budgets, with plans already in place work could begin as early as next summer.

The Major Collision Investigation Unit continues to investigate the circumstances of the collision with its initial focus on whether fatigue was a factor.