LAHORE: At least 140 people were today charred to death and over 100 others injured after an oil tanker overturned and burst into flames as crowds rushed to collect petrol that spilled out to a highway in the Bahawalpur district of Pakistan's Punjab Province.

The oil tanker coming from Karachi to Lahore overturned early this morning on the national highway in the Ahmedpur Sharqia area of the district, some 400 km from Lahore, after its tyre burst.

The fire was apparently caused by someone who lit a cigarette after people from nearby localities gathered on the highway to collect spilt petrol, officials said.

The blaze from the oil spill engulfed scores of residents, killing 140 people and injuring over 100 others.

District Coordination Officer (DCO) Bahwalpur Rana Salim Afzal termed it a "huge tragedy" in the history of Pakistan.