At least 73 killed in Ghana explosion

At least 73 people are dead after an explosion at a petrol station in Ghana's capital Accra.

Billy Anaglate, a spokesman for Ghana Fire Service, said rescue crews were still recovering bodies at the scene.

The cause of the overnight explosion was not immediately known but neighbours said many people had taken shelter at the station amid torrential rains and flooding.

Michael Plange, who lives a few blocks away, told Associated Press that many people were under a shed at the time of the explosion and got trapped.

"We are still trying to salvage the site of the accident before we can come out with an accurate figure," Anaglate told journalists, referring to the death toll.

Graphic footage aired on national television showed corpses being piled into the back of a truck and other charred bodies trapped amid the debris. Neighbouring buildings that had caught fire burned into the night as floodwaters around the site hampered recovery efforts.

The explosion happened near the Kwame Nkrumah Circle, in the centre of Accra.

Police public affairs officer Cephas Arthur told the public to stay away from the scene.

"We must allow the Fire Service and National Disaster Management Organisation to work to find trapped bodies at the scene of explosion," he said.

State radio reported that Accra and other cities across Ghana have been flooded.