Fifteen drown in Guatemala after election rally

GUATEMALA CITY, Sep 3 (Reuters) At least 15 people drowned in Guatemala when a truck carrying them from an election rally was swept away when it tried to cross a river.

The victims were traveling near the border with El Salvador when the accident occurred, yesterday.

They had been returning from a political rally ahead of the country's presidential, congressional and local elections next Sunday, said Jose Carlos Marroquin, spokesman for the National Unity for Hope political party.

''We are still waiting to hear if there are more people missing,'' he said.

Guatemala's heavy rain season, from July to October, often takes lives as rivers overflow and mudslides wipe away homes.

The Guatemalan election campaign has already had its share of tragedy. In what watchdogs are calling the bloodiest campaign since the end of Guatemala's 1960-1996 civil war, close to 50 party members, activists and local candidates have been killed in election violence.

Reuters BJR VP0515