Rescuers have found 28 bodies of victims drown in a boat mishap, which occurred in Youxi Town in Yuechi County, southwest China's Sichuan Province on Wednesday.

Only 7 passengers aboard the boat were saved after the boat sank in a river about 20 meters wide and three meters deeps and running across the town.

Rescuers have not obtained the the exact number of passengers aboard the over-loaded boat, which is privately owned by a local farmer, named Yang Yongsheng.

The boat is registered to carry two passengers. However, it was used as a ferry to carry passengers illegally, according to investigators headed by vice governor of Sichuan Province Yang Zhiwen.

The passengers were heading from a fair back to their home villages. There were senior people and children among the dead.

(Xinhua News Agency March 16, 2006)