Source: BBC 

More than 40 people have died after a fuel tanker crashed and exploded in central Liberia, the country’s chief medical officer Francis Kateh has said.

The tanker overturned along a road in Totota town, about 130km (80 miles) from the capital, Monrovia.

It burst into flames soon after people rushed to the site to scoop fuel from the tanker, eyewitnesses said. 

A pregnant woman was among the dead, and some of the bodies were burnt to ashes, Dr Kateh said.

He told local broadcaster Super Bongese TV that more than 83 people had been admitted to hospital for their injuries following Tuesday’s disaster. 

Patients with more serious injuries had been transferred to hospitals in Monrovia for treatment, Dr Kateh added.