Four injured in explosion at US air base in Japan

TOKYO: An explosion injured four men at a Japanese facility for storing unexploded bombs at a US air base in Okinawa on Monday, a fire official said, with their condition reportedly not critical.

Japan Self-Defence Forces (SDF) members at the facility at Kadena Air Base were trying to wipe rust off items at the facility to re-assess if they were bombs, said local fire department official Akira Kamiunten. During that process there was an explosion that injured four male SDF members who were rushed to hospital, he told AFP.

Jiji Press and other local media said none of the injuries was life-threatening. A defence ministry spokesman also confirmed reports of an explosion at Kadena Air Base, located on the main island of the southern region of Okinawa.