South Korean fighter jets accidentally drop bombs, injuring 8 people

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Two South Korean fighter jets accidentally dropped eight bombs on a civilian area during a joint live-fire exercise with the U.S. military Thursday, injuring eight people, officials said.

The MK-82 bombs released by the KF-16 fighter jets fell outside a firing range, causing civilian damage, the air force said in a statement.

The air force said it will establish a committee to investigate why the accident happened and examine the scale of the civilian damage. It said the fighter jets were taking part in the one-day firing drill with the U.S. military.

An unidentified air force official told local reporters that a pilot of one of the KF-16s put in a wrong coordinate for a bombing site. An unidentified Defense Ministry official also told reporters that more investigation was needed to find why the second KF-16 also dropped bombs on a civilian area.

The contents of the officials' briefing were shared with foreign media.

The air force apologized and expressed hopes for a speedy recovery of the injured people. It said it will actively offer compensation and take other necessary steps.

The accident happened in Pocheon, a city close to the heavily armed border with North Korea.

In a televised briefing, Pocheon Mayor Paek Young-hyun called the bombings “awful” and urged the military to halt drills in the city until it formulates reliable steps that can prevent a recurrence. He said that Pocheon, a city of 140,000 people, provides three major firing ranges for the South Korean and U.S. militaries.

The military later said it has decided to suspend all live-fire drills across South Korea. Observers say the military will resume firing exercises after it learns the exact cause of Thursday's accident and maps out steps to prevent recurrences.

Pocheon’s disaster response department said six civilians and two soldiers were injured and were being treated at hospitals. Four of the injured — all civilians — were in serious condition, the department said. Two of the seriously injured are foreigners — one from Thailand and the other from Myanmar.

Three houses, a Catholic church and a greenhouse were partially damaged but they did not appear to have been directly hit by the bombs, according to the Pocheon department.