(CNN) -- A collision involving two big-rigs and a car Wednesday caused an explosion that sent flames and clouds of smoke billowing and collapsed a highway overpass just north of Detroit, Michigan.
Fire rages at the site of a tanker crash and overpass collapse on I-75 north of Detroit, Michigan, Wednesday.
One of the tankers was traveling on the Interstate 75 about 8:30 p.m. in Hazel Park, near the Nine-Mile overpass, when the collision caused an explosion, said Lt. Shannon Simms of the Michigan State Police.
It was headed northbound, said Bill Shreck of the Department of Transportation. Hazel Park is about 10 miles north of downtown Detroit.
The explosion erupted upward, causing the overpass, carrying two lanes in each direction, to collapse, Simms said. Watch footage of fire »
Firefighters put out the blaze late Wednesday and were able to locate all three drivers of the vehicles involved in the crash. The three suffered minor injuries.
One of the tankers was filled with thousands of gallons of fuel, Simms said.
"I just saw a huge ball of flame go up when I was at the red light, just went up in flame," said witness Mary Greib. "I took off running."
Said another witness, who did not want to be identified: "We had a woman in a light-colored, midsized vehicle of some sort that was hesitant to pass the tanker. A number of vehicles were attempting to go around her in different directions."
He said he was one of them, and passed her on the right, after which the explosion occurred.
"We are not sure what happened," he said.
Vince Brennan said he was on the eighth floor of a nearby building when he heard the explosion coming from where "a vicious curve" exists on the highway.
"I heard a whole bunch of boom, boom, boom," he said. He ran to the window and looked down on a McDonald's restaurant. "You couldn't even see it, it was so black with smoke," he said. "The flames had to be 30, 40 feet in the air."
All About Detroit
A tanker explosion on Interstate 75  has destroyed a part of the Nine Mile Road overpass in Hazel Park, Michigan, a northern suburb of Detroit.  One man, truck driver Ronald Martinez, has been killed and only 4 injuries have been reported. 
I-75 (red) in Michigan
On July 15, 2009 at about 8:15 PM EST, a tanker carrying thousands of gallons of gasoline collided with a semi-truck from Meijer grocery stores, causing an explosion that resulted in heavy black smoke that could be seen for miles. 

It is believed that the tanker was clipped from behind by driver Saied Haidarian-Shahri, 27, of nearby Clawson.  The tanker's two parts broke in half when a semi-truck rammed into the gasoline-filled tanker and it exploded.  The driver of the semi-truck sustained only minor injuries.

Saied Haidarian-Shahri was a relatively new driver, getting his license within the past 6 months. Reports say he was doing 70 mph in a 50 mph zone, called the "9 Mile Curve", along the Chrysler Freeway.  There were no traffic violations on his license. He has been blamed for causing the accident. 

The explosion resulted in the collapse of the Nine Mile Road overpass over the freeway. The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) has decided that the rest of the overpass cannot be saved. 

MDOT has closed down the freeway between Interstate 696 and Eight Mile Road both northbound and southbound. Local streets surrounding the site have been closed too. This is expected to cause trouble for commuters who travel one of the most used freeways in the metro area.

About 2,000 residents of Hazel Park are now without power due to the accident.