Four children, two of a family, drowned in a pool of rainwater at Phulbari VDC-1 in Kailali district on Wednesday.

The dead have been identified as Ram Bhat (8), his brother Laxman (6), Govinda Nepali (8) and Sharmila BK (6). Police said that the victims fell into the pool while they were having bath. Two other siblings of the Bhat brothers, Dipa (5) and Harish (4), were rescued. A farmer, who was ploughing the field nearby, heard the children yell and rescued the two.

They are receiving treatment at Seti Zonal Hospital, Dhangadhi.

The children went to the pool when there were not elder members in the house, which is about 500 metres away from the incident site.

A group of eight children went there for bathing. Police suspected that the children drowned as they tried to pull out the one who first fell into the pool--formed as rainwater filled a pitch made by a brick kiln while extracting soil.