At least 32 people were killed on Wednesday in South Sudan when suspected nomadic herders from neighbouring Sudan attacked a village in the disputed oil-rich region of Abyei along the border, local officials said.

"Thirty-two people were killed among them children and women, and secondly about 24 people are wounded ... about 15 people including children were abducted and 20 houses burned," AFP news agency quotes Kuol Alor Kuol, the chief administrator of the Abyei area.

The region is inhabited by the Ngor Dinka ethnic community and the Arab Misseriya, who usually foray from Sudan into South Sudan with their animals for grazing.

Wednesday's attack happened at 7AM local time, when the attackers stormed the Dinka village of Kolom and set houses ablaze.

"Bodies got burnt and you cannot recognize them," Kuol said.

It was not immediately clear if all the 32 people died from burns.

The official also noted that some 18 other people were injured in the attack before the attackers withdrew.

"The situation at the moment is calm and the (Abyei-area) residents ... have all gone back. They are now preparing mass graves for the victims," he said.