About 150 persons lost their lives on Thursday in Accra, the capital of Ghana, after a petrol station went up in flames.

The tragedy occurred when people rushed into a filling station to escape an unusually heavy downpour.

The rain was said to have swept a stored large container of fuel into a nearby fire which subsequently led to a massive fire that killed many of the people seeking shelter.

A spokesperson for the Ghana Fire Service, Billy Anaglate, told the BBC earlier in the day that at least 96 people died in the fire at a petrol station.

However, later in the day, Sky News reported that the death toll had increased to 150.

There are also fears that the number of dead could rise as search‎ continues till early Friday.

The heavy downpour, which is yet to cease, is said to be hindering relief and evacuation efforts by the Ghanaian authorities.

Hospitals in the capital city said their morgues are full and that there is lack of space to accommodate the bodies which continue to stream in.

The obviously shocked Ghanaian president, Dramani Mahama, described the loss of life as “catastrophic and almost unprecedented.”

Communications Minister, Edward Boamah, also described the situation as a national emergency.