15 injured as S.Korea's fighter jets accidentally drop bombs

South Korean fighter jets accidentally dropped eight bombs on a civilian district on Thursday, injuring 15 people and damaging houses and a church during military exercises in Pocheon, the Air Force and fire agency said.

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The fire agency said in a statement that 15 people were wounded, including two who were seriously hurt.

Pocheon is about 40 kilometres (northeast of Seoul, near the heavily militarised border with North Korea.

"There was a sudden loud roar of a fighter jet, then an explosion rang out.. When I went to the scene, there were about four houses that were halved from the damage, people hurt," said Oh Moung-su, a 65-year-old resident.

"Dusk and smoke rose into the sky, water gushed out of a pipe. People in a vehicle going to a construction site were injured — some of them couldn't even get out of the car. Another was outside the car covering his eye."

South Korea's Air Force said eight 500-pound (225kg) Mk82 bombs from two KF-16 jets fell outside the shooting range during joint live-fire exercises.

"We are sorry for the damage caused by the abnormal drop accident, and we wish the injured a speedy recovery," the Air Force said in a statement.