BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN - THREE foreigners died and 16 others were injured in a gas explosion at a seafood factory in Brunei, the government said on Wednesday.

It gave no further details about the dead.

The explosion happened on Tuesday in the Muara area near the capital, Bandar Seri Begawan, the government statement said, adding that the factory was damaged.

Residents in the area felt the blast, said local village leader Hassan Jerudin.

The Borneo Bulletin on Wednesday quoted a fisherman, identified only as Ugik, as saying he heard a huge explosion from the factory at about midday and saw workers running out of the compound, some of them covered in blood. -- AFP