New Chile bombings hit resort city

Chilean police officers stand guard inside La Moneda subway station in Santiago on Sep 9, 2014. (AFP/Martin Bernetti)

SANTIAGO: Two homemade bombs have exploded at a shopping centre in the Chilean resort city of Vina del Mar, adding to panic after a subway bombing in Santiago wounded 14 people.

The latest explosion came on Wednesday (Sep 10) inside a bathroom at the Open Plaza mall in Vina del Mar. It caused no injuries, but came less than 24 hours after a similar blast outside the nearby Tottus supermarket wounded one woman Tuesday night.

The twin bombings in Vina del Mar, a picturesque city on the Pacific coast, have added to a growing climate of fear after Monday's attack on the Escuela Militar (Military School) subway station in the capital.

The bomb in Tuesday's explosion, which was made from a plastic bottle filled with aluminum and hydrochloric acid, was placed inside a trash can, like the homemade device that ripped through a packed subway food court on Monday, police said.

It went off when a janitor tried to empty the trash can, leaving the 43-year-old woman with trauma to the ears. She was treated at a health centre and released. Police are investigating all three bombings.

The South American country has seen a string of unsolved small bombings recently.

Monday's blast in Santiago, which the government condemned as a "terrorist act," was the second on the Chilean capital's subway system in less than two months.

The explosions come as Chile prepares for the 41st anniversary of the coup that overthrew socialist president Salvador Allende and launched dictator Augusto Pinochet's 17-year rule.

The September 11, 1973 coup remains deeply divisive, and the date is routinely marked by violent protests, gunfights and clashes with police.

But no one has claimed the bombings, and it is unclear if they are linked to the anniversary. Police say they have few clues, and have called for international assistance in the investigation.