Kabul - The death toll has risen to 39 with dozens more critically injured from a fuel tanker that exploded at a petrol station in western Afghanistan on Sunday, according to doctors in western province of Herat.
Four of the injured people died on Sunday night in one of Herat's hospital due to lack of proper health facilities, Mohammad Sarwar, a doctor in Herat, said.
"Most of the injured have more than 50 per cent burns and it will be difficult to cure them," he said.
"Almost all of the injured people are at risk of dying," Sarwar said, adding that men, women and children were among the victims.
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| 'It was not a terrorist act' |
Sayed Nasir Ahmad, intelligence chief for the western province of Herat, said that the blast took place on Sunday afternoon in Shindand's bazaar, about 560km west of the capital Kabul.
"First a tanker of gas went off and then caused a nearby petrol station to explode," according to Ahmad.
The cause of the blast was still unclear but believed to be an accident, he said.
According to another official in Herat who asked not to be identified, the blast was caused by a small flame.
"For sure, it was not a terrorist act," he said.
In total 28 of the injured people have been transferred to hospitals in Herat for treatment, Ahmad said.
"Thirty-one people were killed on the spot and four others lost their lives while being transferred to Herat province," Ahmad said.
Most of those now being treated in Herat were seriously injured, he added.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai said in a statement he was "deeply saddened" by the news of the accident. - Sapa-DPA
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