South Korea's Air Force confirmed Thursday that a fighter jet mistakenly released eight bombs outside its designated target area during a training exercise, resulting in civilian casualties.

"Eight MK-82 general-purpose bombs were abnormally released from an Air Force KF-16 aircraft, landing outside the designated firing range," the Air Force stated.

The incident took place around 10:00 am (0100 GMT) in Pocheon, a city roughly 25 kilometers (16 miles) south of the heavily fortified border with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

Expressing regret over the mishap, the Air Force acknowledged the injuries caused and extended well wishes to those affected. It has since formed an accident response committee to investigate and pledged to "take all necessary measures, including compensation for damages."

The jet had been engaged in a joint live-fire drill alongside the South Korean Army, according to military officials. Yonhap news agency also reported that South Korea and the United States were conducting combined live-fire exercises in Pocheon that same day.

South Korea's National Fire Agency stated that the bombs were "presumed to have fallen on a village during a South Korea-US joint exercise," causing "casualties and property damage, with many displaced residents."

At least four individuals sustained serious injuries, while three suffered minor wounds. A church and parts of two homes were also damaged.

'Like a thunderclap'

A local resident, identified only by his surname Park, recounted the moment of the explosion. "I suddenly heard an enormous explosion, like a thunderclap, and the whole house shook. When I went outside, everything was in chaos," he told Yonhap.

Even those a kilometer away felt the impact. "A sudden explosion shook the building. The windows shattered, and one of our teachers was injured and taken to the hospital," said Yu, the director of a nearby senior center. "Fortunately, none of the seniors were hurt, but they were so frightened that we sent them all home."

The incident comes ahead of the annual "Freedom Shield" military drills between South Korea and the United States, one of their largest joint exercises, set to begin later this month.

Military accidents are not unprecedented. In 2022, a South Korean Hyunmu-2 short-range ballistic missile malfunctioned and crashed into a military golf course in Gangwon Province after being launched in response to a DPRK missile test. Unlike the latest incident, that misfire did not cause any casualties or explosions.