Boy drowns after being swept into drain

A boy has drowned after reportedly being washed into a drain in a Darwin suburb.

The eight-year-old died after what police are calling a "drowning incident" at Gray, in Palmerston, on Monday afternoon.

They say a report will be prepared for the coroner.

A Police, Fire and Emergency Services spokeswoman on Tuesday refused to provide any more details about the incident.

The ABC reports that the boy was one of four young boys who were playing at the drain when he vanished into fast-flowing water.

He was carried about 400 metres by the water, with fire crews pulling him out from another drain opening, according to the report.

The boy was rushed to hospital where he later died.