Three children were killed and five others were wounded in a strong explosion Tuesday afternoon in the southern Philippine town of Buldon in Maguindanao, a local official said.

The authorities, however, ruled out terrorism in the incident that occurred shortly after 2:00 p.m. local time (0600 GMT) in the remote village of Mataya, Buldon, a known former rebel-infested community in the region.

"The victims were playing inside the rice milling building when they accidentally touch the explosive they unearthed," Alex Tomawis, husband of Buldon mayor Fatima who was at the site after the blast, told Xinhua on phone.

"Two of the five wounded kids remain in critical condition due to severe shrapnel wounds in their bodies," the source added, who is also a mayor in a nearby Barira town.

Tomawis said the blast site was once a battleground when government troops launched an offensive against Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels in 2000.

"Some of the mortars coming from the soldiers and rebels that failed to explode have landed there before. Now, the area became ( a place) of civilian populace," Tomawis said.

(Xinhua News Agency March 3, 2009)