"I wanted it to be fake:" Two Kewaskum High School students killed after striking deputy head-on

KEWASKUM (WITI) -- Two Kewaskum High School students are dead -- after their vehicle slammed into a Washington County Sheriff's deputy on Wednesday morning, June 18th.

It happened at 8:39 a.m. on County Highway H in Washington County.

Officials say wet roads may have been a factor in this crash. It happened right in the midst of Wednesday morning's storms.

"There was water standing on the roads even on our response out there," Kewaskum Fire Chief Mark Groeschel said.

The Kewaskum High School students were pronounced dead at the scene.

The Washington County Sheriff's deputy was taken to the hospital with non life-threatening injuries. That deputy was treated and released.

The State Patrol says the vehicle the Kewaskum High School students were traveling in went over the yellow line and hit the deputy.

Friends of the victims in this case say the two were best friends -- and were apparently on their way to run errands.

A FOX6 News crew on scene has seen friends showing up to pay their respects.

They say they are heartbroken by what has happened.

"I don't know what I'm feeling right now. I just wanted to see it to make it more real, because...I don't know. I wanted it to be fake," a friend of the victims told FOX6 News.

The Fire Department says both of the Kewaskum High School students killed in the crash were wearing their seatbelts.

The Wisconsin State Patrol’s Technical Reconstruction Unit is reconstructing the crash in an effort to determine what happened.

Kewaskum Fire Chief Mark Groeschel was one of the first to arrive at the scene. He says the deputy who was struck is the son of a retired Kewaskum firefighter.

"Most of us here at the station know the deputy. Hits a little bit harder when you know someone," Chief Groeschel said.

The names of the individuals involved are being withheld pending notification of family members.

FOX6 News is told one of the students would have been a junior next year, and one a senior.

Counselors will be made available for students and community members at the Kewaskum High School cafeteria on Thursday, June 19th from 8:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. and again on Friday, June 20th.

Monitor FOX6 News and FOX6Now.com for updates on this developing story.