Five workers were injured, three of them seriously, when a landmine exploded as they cooked rice in Kratie’s Snuol district on Saturday night.

District police chief Sok Kim said the five victims, aged 25 to 40, were all from Prey Veng province’s Mesang district and had been clearing a plantation before the explosion in Trapaing Sre village at about 7pm.

The victims were rushed to hospital in Kratie province, but were soon transferred to the Kampong Cham provincial hos­pital, Sok Kim said, adding they had been cooking in an area riddled with landmines.

Deputy director of Kampong Cham provincial hospital Mey Moniborin said three of the five victims had serious injuries and two may have lost their sight.

“It was like a fire bomb, because when it exploded, it sparked a fire, which burned their skin severely,” he said.

The five victims were transferred to Phnom Penh yesterday for further treatment.