Three days of mourning in Ghana for fire victims

150 people killed by Accra petrol station fire and floods.

Ghana will hold three days of mourning for the dozens of victims of a massive explosion at a petrol station in Accra on the night of 3 June.

The country's president John Dramani Mahama, who called for the three-day mourning to begin on 8 June, said that the fire and floods around the capital had claimed some 150 lives.

The fire broke out after crowds had sought shelter from torrential rain at the state-owned GOIL petrol station in downtown Accra. The explosion was triggered after floods swept fuel being stored at the station into a nearby fire, which also engulfed the surrounding buildings.

The Ghanaian government is allocating about $12 million for relief operations and to repair damaged infrastructure.

Accra has been battling days of heavy rain, which has left many residents homeless and without power, and the bad weather is set to continue over the next few days.

Tanzania and Kenya in east Africa have also faced heavy rain and floods in recent weeks.