Fire kills 153 people after fuel tanker crash in Nigeria

NIGERIA: A fuel tanker exploded overnight in northern Nigeria, killing at least 153 people who rushed to the scene of the accident to collect leaking petrol, officials say.

The fire engulfed the overturned vehicle, which had been cordoned off by officers after it crashed in Jigawa state, the police told the BBC.

ALSO READ: One Direction star Liam Payne dies after falling from hotel balcony in Buenos Aires

About 100 other people injured in the explosion have been taken to hospitals in the region, many of them in critical condition.

Officers had warned people not to approach the tanker after the accident late on Tuesday night, but they were unable to contain the growing crowd, said police spokesman Lawal Shiisu Adam.