Qld man hospitalised with facial burns

A man has burns to his face and hands after an explosion from the back of a bitumen truck in far north Queensland.

Paramedics say the man is being airlifted to Cairns Hospital in a serious condition after the incident at Eubenangee, south of Cairns, on Wednesday morning.

His injuries could have been far worse if he hadn't been wearing protective equipment, according to Queensland Ambulance Services senior operations supervisor Rita Kelly.

Ms Kelly says emergency services have set up an exclusion zone around the explosion area.

"The vehicle involved still has approximately one thousand litres of bitumen at boiling temperatures and there is the potential for an explosion," she said.