A fire at the Tiger club on the island of Phuket has claimed the lives of at least four people, with more than 20 left injured.

The club is popular with foreign tourists, local officials said.

“There are four confirmed dead. We believe they are foreign tourists but it is not yet confirmed,” Phuket deputy governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada said.

“The fire was caused by lightning which struck a transformer and the fire spread throughout the place,” he added.

Police kept back a crowd of onlookers as ambulances arrived to collect the casualties, according to local media.