Four students have drowned and three others are missing, after strong currents dragged them out to sea during a picnic on a beach next to Xiangbi Mountain, east China's Fujian Province, on Saturday.

The students were picnicking on a beach next to Xiangbi Mountain (Elephant's Trunk Mountain) in Changle,  Fujian Province, according to Southeast Express, a local newspaper.

About 43 students and a teacher from a local secondary vocational school went to the beach on a trip organized by a local tour agency.

They had a barbecue in a small pine forest on Xiangbi Mountain, according to one student.

After the barbecue the all-male group, aged between 18 and 19, went to the beach to play football. At about 11:30 am, they finished their game and most of the students went back to the forest.

But a few went to the sea to wash their feet. A huge wave, brought about by strong winds, reportedly crashed onto the beach at that time, dragging three of the students out to sea.

The other students sounded the alarm and the teacher organized a search operation for the three missing boys. But another four students disappeared in the process. They, too, were reportedly dragged out to sea by strong currents.

The teacher eventually called the emergency services for help.

As of yesterday afternoon, four bodies had been found. The search for the others continues, said Zhang Xuede, a reporter with the local newspaper covering the accident.

According to Zhang, the weather on Saturday wasn't ideal for an outing. Force 8 winds were blowing. The travel agency and the school refused to discuss why the outing went ahead as scheduled despite the bad weather, Zhang added.

This was not the first accident to have happened at this beach. Last October, a student was engulfed by a big wave and drowned, according to the newspaper.

(China Daily September 26, 2005)