South-west police plead for caution after man killed, roads closed after crashes

A man died following a fiery three-truck crash east of Skipton on Wednesday evening, almost two years to the day since two people were killed in a collision nearby.

Crews were called to the scene on the Glenelg Highway at Carranballac just before 5pm.

Three grain trucks were involved in the collision resulting in a large spill.

Ambulance Victoria confirmed one driver, a man in his 30s, was taken to the Royal Melbourne Hospital by air ambulance in a stable condition with upper body injuries, while the second driver, a man in his 40s, was taken by road ambulance to Ballarat in a stable condition with minor injuries.

The deceased man is yet to be formally identified, and the exact circumstances surrounding the collision are yet to be determined.

The Glenelg Highway remains closed between Darlington-Carranballac Road and Beaufort-Carranballac Road.

Detours are in place via Skipton Road, Western Highway and Eurambeen-Streaham Road.

This is a significant detour adding more than 70 kilometres to the journey.

The closure is under the control of emergency services. The Glenelg Highway will open as soon as the clean up is complete and it is safe to do so.

Several CFA units from across the district were called to extinguish a fire that impacted one of the trucks.

At the time, Highway Patrol officers said the two victims, both from overseas, may have been following a GPS device.

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The incident occurred two years after two people lost their lives at the the nearby Waldron Lane intersection, just five kilometres away from Wednesday's crash, when their car attempting to turn onto the highway collided with a four-wheel-drive on May 6, 2019, about 5pm.

In a separate incident less than an hour later, two Western Star trucks collided in Drumborg, resulting in a large spill of woodchips.

Western region division two road safety manager Acting Senior Sergeant Danny Brown said a prime mover with a single trailer collided with a B-double truck just before 6pm Thursday.

"One vehicle travelling south on Sinclair Settlement Road collided with another travelling east on princes Highway," he said.

"The B-double truck overturned, spilling woodchips onto the roadway."

Acting Senior Sergeant Brown said there were no injuries.

He said both vehicles suffered significant damage and required heavy haulage from Colac and Warrnambool.

The Princes Highway was closed in both directions between Pattersons Road and Sinclair Settlement Road during the clean up process.

The closure was under the control of emergency services with motorists directed to use Dartmoor-Hamilton Road and Portland-Casterton Road as an alternate route.

The Department of Transport said the Princes Highway was reopened on Thursday about 6.45am.

Acting Senior Sergeant Brown said investigations were ongoing.

He urged motorists to be careful on the road.

"My advice is to be aware of your surroundings, the conditions on the road and the weather, and the actions of other drivers," he said.

"Especially now that the weather is turning on us, it's important to be cautious."

Anyone who witnessed the crashes or with dash cam footage is urged to phone Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report via the website.

Lives lost on Victoria's road: 88 this year, 89 last year.

- with The Courier.

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