22 school children drown as boat sinks in Sudan

At least 22 Sudanese school children and a woman drowned when their boat sank in the River Nile, the official Sudanese news agency reported.

The water’s high current caused the boat’s engine to stop causing it to sink around 750 kilometres to the north of the Sudanese capital, Khartoum.

There were 40 children on board.

An eyewitness said that the boat was sailing from north to south, against the current.

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Sudanese civil defence forces are still searching for the bodies of victims and the number of those killed is expected to rise.

The incident comes after the area experiences four hours of heavy rain which led to power cuts and made road impassable.