20 children dead in disco stampede

ARUSHA, Tanzania (AP) -- Officials say a stampede in an overcrowded dance hall has left at least 20 children dead in central Tanzania.

Regional police commander Daudi Siasa says 50 other children were hurt in the town of Tabora Wednesday. He says the hall was filled to twice its capacity. All the children inside were between the ages of 5 and 13.

Daytime children's dances were once banned in Tanzania but are still held occasionally.

Wednesday's event was meant to mark the end of the holy month of Ramadan in the prominently Muslim town.

President Jakaya Kikwete has sent condolences to the children's families and sent a senior cabinet member to investigate the incident.