Ammunition warehouse blaze in western Cambodia kills 20 soldiers: PM

PHNOM PENH - Twenty soldiers were killed on Saturday as fire swept through an ammunition warehouse in western Cambodia, setting off a series of explosions, the country's Prime Minister Hun Manet said.

The blaze broke out at 2:30 pm local time at the ammunition depot in the Third Military Command in Chamkar Doung village of Kampong Speu province's Chbar Mon town.

"Twenty soldiers were pronounced dead and several others were wounded in these explosions," Hun Manet wrote in a text posted on his official Telegram channel.

He expressed his deepest condolences to the bereaved families and extended his sympathy to the injured people.

The prime minister donated 20,000 US dollars to each of the bereaved families and 5,000 dollars to each of the wounded soldiers.

Kampong Speu Provincial Police Chief Major General Sam Samuon told Xinhua that an investigation has been launched to determine the cause of the incident. The extent of the damage to the ammunition depot remains under assessment.