At least eight children died Saturday when a passenger tricycle carrying 13 children broke loose and sank in an irrigation canal in Egypt's Nile Delta, AP reported.

The tragedy occurred in the city of Itay el-Baroud in the Mediterranean province of Beheira. The children were factory workers in the city, 140 kilometers north of the country's capital, Cairo, police said in a statement.

Rescuers recovered the bodies of eight children aged 12 to 15, health officials said. At least four people survived and rescuers are looking for at least one more.

The prosecutor's office launched an investigation into the causes of the accident.