Radio Mozambique initially said 73 people died in the tanker explosion on Thursday, though the Portuguese news agency Lusa, citing government data, said on Friday that 56 had been confirmed killed and that another 108 were injured. "The incident occurred when citizens tried to take petrol from a truck" in the village of Caphiridzange in Tete province, near Malawi, the government said in a statement. “Because of the heat, the truck burst into flames, leading to the deaths of 43 people and causing burns in 110 others, according to investigators’ initial findings,” it added. The precise circumstances of the explosion remained unclear. There were conflicting reports about how the accident happened — Mozambican media initially said the tanker driver was selling the fuel to residents, but another report indicated that residents were trying to get fuel out of the truck by themselves. MAPUTO At least 73 people were killed and scores injured in Mozambique on Thursday as they tried to siphon fuel from an overturned truck which exploded, the government said. Three ministers were due to arrive at the scene on Friday in order to monitor the rescuers' work.
At least 73 people have been killed and hundreds injured in a fuel tanker explosion in the town of Caphiridzange in Mozambique's Tete Province.