MADISON, Wis. -- A large semi driving on the Beltline struck the underside of the Seminole Highway Bridge on Friday afternoon. Two lanes on the Beltline that were closed earlier Friday evening are now open.

See Photos Of Damage

Witnesses said that they saw an explosion of concrete as the truck hauling the world's largest coal-mining bucket clipped the underside of the bridge, taking out three girders. The girders are damaged beyond repair. The accident occurred at about 2:24 p.m., WISC-TV reported.

Lory Hoffman, a bartender at Tony Frank's, said that she saw the accident happen.

"All of a sudden, I heard this big crash and saw lots of cement flying and was like a cloud of dust and this semi came out from behind the bridge and whatever was on it was shaking like crazy," Hoffman said.

Hoffman said that she felt the crash as it shook the building.

Traffic was rerouted around the bridge as crews took a look at the damage and cleared the debris. Two lanes heading west on the Beltline were closed for several hours, as was traffic traveling on the bridge. The Beltline lanes have since reopened to vehicles.

Department of Transportation officials said that the bridge itself could be closed for a few weeks, WISC-TV reported.

The state inspector said that it will issue a citation for the driver of the semi because he had no permit to clear the Seminole Highway Bridge as he was supposed to exit on Fish Hatchery Road.

Authorities are now confronting the issue of removing the 110,000-pound bucket. It's too big to go back under the Seminole Highway Bridge again and it won't fit under the Verona Road Bridge.

Stay tuned to WISC-TV and Channel 3000 for continuing coverage.