UPDATE, 11.45am: Victoria Police has just released the following statement:
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“A man and woman have died after the ute they were travelling in at Beaufort veered onto the wrong side of the road into the path of a truck this morning.
Emergency services were called to the Western Highway at the railway overpass following reports a car and a truck had collided about 9.30am.
The deceased man and woman are yet to be identified.
The driver of the truck has been taken to hospital with minor injuries.
The exact circumstances surrounding the crash are yet to be determined.
The Western Highway is closed in both directions at the railway overpass, until further notice.
Anyone with information or dashcam footage is asked to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au”
Lives Lost on Victorian roads this year:
2017: 223
2016: 260
UPDATE, 11.30am: Police have just confirmed the two passengers of the car have been killed.
Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Doug Fryer, the state’s top traffic cop, confirmed the tragedy in a press conference this morning.
“We’ve had a ute towing a trailer and that collided head-on with a truck and we've lost a man and a woman in that crash,” he said.
“The amount of trauma we’re experiencing in the country at the moment is just significant.”
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The double-fatality means five people have now been killed on Victorian roads today, following a crash in Lakes Entrance in which three people died.
In that crash, the car came off the road and smashed into a tree around 2.15am, killing all three people in the vehicle.
It is not known how long the Western Highway will remain closed.
10.45am: The Western Highway is closed in both directions after a serious collision between a truck and a car in Beaufort.
All emergency services are currently at the scene of the nasty crash, which occurred just before 9.30am.
The truck driver, a male in his 40s, has been taken to Ballarat Base Hospital with leg injuries.
He is in a serious but stable condition.
It is believed there were two people in the car that collided with the truck. Their injuries have not been confirmed.
The road closure is under Victoria Police control and the highway is expected to be closed for a number of hours.
Please delay your travel or detour via Avoca.