A landmine explosion near the inter-Korean border has caused multiple North Korean casualties in recent days, according to the South Korean military, after the DPRK restarted work to reinforce border defenses.

In a short report released Thursday, Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) assessed that North Korea deployed “dozens to hundreds of personnel” to enhance front-line fortifications in early March, resuming construction that was suspended for months due to winter military training.

But the dangerous work led to another landmine explosion “several days ago,” JCS said, without providing a specific date. It suggested the incident occurred because the DPRK soldiers