Scores killed in Mozambique fuel-truck blast

At least 73 people have been killed in a fuel truck explosion in Mozambique, officials say.

A government statement said people had been trying to take petrol from the truck when it exploded in the village of Caphiridzange in Tete province, near the border with Malawi.

More than 100 others were injured, some of them critically, it said.

One report said that the truck had crashed and people had been trying to siphon off fuel.

Announcing an investigation, information ministry director Joao Manasses said it was also possible that the vehicle had been ambushed by residents.

Government ministers are due to arrive in the area on Friday to oversee the rescue work and the inquiry.

The tanker had been carrying fuel to Malawi from the port city of Beira.

Mozambique is one of the world’s poorest countries, with more than half the 24 million population living below the poverty line.

It gained independence from Portugal in 1975 but is still suffering from the effects of a 16-year civil war that ended in 1992. BBC News