150 Die In Ghana Fuel Station Explosion.

No fewer than 150 lives were lost in Accra, capital of Ghana, after a petrol station went up in flames.

People were said to have sought shelter in a filling station because of a downpour when the tragedy struck. It was learnt that the explosion resulted from the flood that swept stored fuel into a nearby fire.

It was gathered that rescue efforts were being hindered by the high volume of flood which had displaced many. There were also fears that the number of dead could rise as the search of the site continues.

A bus conductor, who survived the inferno, Yaw Aforve, told the BBC that he was sleeping in his car at the petrol station when he heard the fire. He said he jumped into the floodwaters and when he came up for air, the fire burnt his face.

“I was swept away by the water to the other side [of the road]. “I saw so many people screaming and shouting,” he said.

President Dramani Mahama toured the scene, describing the loss of life as “catastrophic and almost unprecedented.” He said a lot of people had lost their lives, adding that “he was short of words.”

Communications Minister, Edward Boamah, described the situation as a “national emergency.”