The blast resounded in the neighbourhood and hundreds rushed to the scene. Fire-fighters tried to extinguish the blaze, but it was too late for many.
People travelling in their cars had been incinerated.
It's the first time an attack in Baghdad has killed so many civilians, people were shocked and angry.
As we arrived, the sandstorm choked the city, turning the light an eerie yellow-grey.
An eyewitness said, "Two rockets, one on this side, one on that side. There's no military base here. There are no weapons or soldiers here. They are all civilians. Men, women and children, going along the road. I saw it with my own eyes."
A restaurant frequented by workers in the area was hit. One man said he believed three people were killed here. As this was the main road heading north-west out of the city, the Americans may have been looking for fixed or mobile targets, but this was a disaster.
This is the kind of scene the Americans and British need to avoid. People have flocked here, they're angry because ordinary people were killed, driving their cars and in their houses.
Last night the state TV news broadcast a message saying Iraqis should be prepared to fight without waiting for orders because they might be cut off from communication and infrastructure. A few minutes later, the TV building was hit, and the news went off the air.
It came back again this morning with a weaker signal. The Iraqis were clearly expecting the strike and may have alternative means of broadcasting.
On the streets today, we talked to people about their experience of the war so far. A woman we spoke to had trembled when the ground shook, but put on the official brave face when asked, even with a son whose been 15 days at the northern front:
"I am confident, and my heart is calm. People ask me, why are you so calm and I say it's because I have given him to God and God is looking after him."
Two days ago, a house on the street we are on was hit so everyone's on edge. But people are still travelling.
Another man drove today from Baquba, 40 miles north-east of Baghdad where there have also been attacks:
"They hit the microwave tower and the party headquarters, and communications facilities. Then they came back yesterday and struck them again. There's nothing in Baquba, no army or anything."
Shops are open again. People need to eat and earn money. This baker insisted on giving us biscuits, saying that was what Iraqi values meant:
"The Americans have to know that they'll never have a foothold in Iraq. It's absolutely impossible for us to live alongside colonialists in this day and age."
Despite the danger, Baghdad residents venture out on the streets to shop and work. that's why so many were killed this morning. If daytime air raids continue, it's inevitable that more civilians will lose their lives and fewer will see the Americans and British as their liberators.
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