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HUDSON — Investigators are still trying to determine what caused an apparent head-on collision that killed three people early Wednesday morning on Interstate 39.

“It looks like the northbound tractor trailer crossed the median and hit the other semi,” said a witness, Lance Schmid of Clinton, who was traveling on the interstate and saw the wreckage. “I don't know how anyone could have survived that crash.”

McLean County Coroner Kathy Davis confirmed the three victims were pronounced dead at the scene near mile marker 4, but said that identification of the victims is continuing and that autopsies will be conducted Thursday.

The incident remains under investigation by her office and the Illinois State Police.

Ryan Lanham of Bloomington was driving his girlfriend, Nicole, to work and was northbound on the interstate just before 6 a.m. Wednesday, when it was still dark.

“There was this big, bad explosion,” he said. “It was the biggest explosion I have ever seen. It was like something out of a war. It’s hard to believe that neither of them were fuel trucks because it was really intense.”

Lanham pulled over to see if he could help, but fire had already engulfed the semis, he said.