Seventeen people were killed when two dragon boats capsized in southern China, authorities said.
Photo: AFP
The boats were practicing for a race in the Taohua River in the city of Guilin when the accident happened, the fire department confirmed.
It was not immediately clear what caused the boats to capsize.
The fire department said on its official social media account that search efforts ended late on Saturday and 17 people had been confirmed dead - a total of 60 people fell into the water.
The official Xinhua News Agency said eight boats and over 200 people had been deployed to the rescue.
The accident happened where two flows of the river converge, causing a powerful current.
Most of those who went into the river were not wearing life jackets, media reported.
Two organisers of the practice, from the village of Dunmu, were detained, Xinhua said.
Dragon boat racing is popular in various parts of Asia and the Dragon Boat Festival (Duanwu) is a traditional holiday in China, this year on June 18.
China has sought to step up safety surrounding nationwide dragon boat racing during the festival, which commemorates the death of the poet and minister Qu Yuan.
- ABC
