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Enraged by a recent emergency bomb release by a U.S. fighter at a training range in the West Sea, leading civic groups yesterday called for fundamental measures to solve similar problems surrounding U.S. training ranges - including closure of the U.S. range in question.

They also requested that the United States make a formal apology for the incident, fully compensate the victims and suspend bomber training at the U.S. Air Force's Koon-ni Range.

They renewed their demand for an immediate revision of the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), which contains regulations governing the status of the 37,000 servicemembers, their dependents and facilities in Korea.

A civic group, called the "National Action to Rewrite the Unfair SOFA," organized a rally at noon yesterday in front of the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) to protest SOFA, while launching a petition to revise the agreement.

Calling the recent bombing accident "not an accident but inevitable," representatives of the civic group urged the United States to close down the range immediately.

Another civic organization, called "the National Campaign for Eradication of Crime by U.S. Troops in Korea," also staged a demonstration in front of the Yongsan military compound in central Seoul to protest the Maehyang-ni bombing incident.

Members of the civic group called for SOFA to be rewritten immediately, saying the pact doesn't require the U.S. side to even report any incidents or dangerous situations involving U.S. troops and facilities in Korea to the South Korean Defense Ministry.

Those rallies came one day after a local report that a U.S. Air Force A-10 fighter, which was experiencing engine trouble, dropped six 500-pound bombs on the Koon-ni Range Monday as an emergency measure to reduce the aircraft's weight. The range, built in 1955 on a 7.19 million pyong sea and land area, is on Nong Island, off the coast of Maehyang-ni, Hwasong County.

The bombing caused explosions that shattered windows and damaged the walls and roofs of some 170 houses in nearby villages and injured seven residents, according to Maehyang-ni residents.

The U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) and Hwasong county police are now investigating the bombing incident, a Defense Ministry official said.

Citing noise problems, the villagers near the range have demanded the relocation of the training range for the past 15 years. In February 1998, they filed a lawsuit with a Seoul court, seeking damages for psychological problems caused by the noise created during bomber training.

The villagers formed a task force to assess the extent of the damage from the Monday bombing, while seeking compensation.

"All the villagers have been constantly exposed to the high risks of bomber training as the target is just 1.2 km away from our villages and the shooting range is just 500 meters away," said Chun Man-kyu, head of the task force.

Chun claimed that bomber training has so far resulted in 13 deaths and 22 injuries, along with enormous damage to the village's livestock industry. (KSJ)