Two power poles were bombed and damaged in tambon Bor Ngor of Rangae district at 8.15pm on Sunday. Nobody was hurt.
Security authorities did not inspect the blast site on a road in Ban Bae Rae village until Monday morning to prevent an attack on personnel.
They found two damaged roadside power poles standing five metres apart. One was severed and the other was slightly damaged. Scraps of motorcycle tubes were scattered around the area, along with fragments of pipe bombs estimated to weigh about five kilogrammes before exploding. Officials found that the bombs were detonated with integrated circuit timers.
Local residents said they saw two young men arrive at the scene on two motorcycles at about 8pm on Sunday. They did not believe the men were acting suspiciously -- but five minutes after they left, a deafening explosion ripped through the area.
Officials also said that components of the bombs were similar to those detonated at other power poles and on railway tracks in Narathiwat on Friday and Saturday.
A security source said the spate of bombings was a message from young insurgents who did not want their senior representatives to enter into negotiation with government officials through the facilitation of Malaysia.
Earlier, Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuqon said the attacks on Samila beach in Songkhla's Muang district last Wednesday could be politically motivated and were not linked with the southern insurgency.
