January 1, 1999
Web posted at: 7:23 p.m. EST (0023 GMT)

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (CNN) -- Two people were injured when a car bomb exploded Friday evening in a popular tourist area along the Cape Town waterfront -- the same area where an August blast killed two people and injured dozens of others.

Thousands of people were inside bars and restaurants along the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront when the bomb exploded in a parking lot about 6:55 p.m. (1655 GMT/11:55 a.m. EST.) One man was treated for superficial shrapnel wounds and another for shock. Both were South Africans.

"We have been very, very lucky that this was not more serious," said police Capt. Jacques Wiese.

The Toyota Corolla that apparently contained the bomb was destroyed, and several nearby cars were heavily damaged. Shards of debris were scattered along the pavement.

On August 25, a pipe bomb ripped through the Planet Hollywood restaurant on the waterfront, killing two men and injuring dozens of others. Police suspect that blast might have been the work of Muslim militants protesting U.S. air attacks in Afghanistan and Sudan.

Two callers claiming to belong to a militant Muslim group claimed responsibility for that blast, but the group's official spokesman later denied any involvement.

Police said it was too early to speculate on who might have been responsible for Friday's blast, which came during the height of the summer tourist season and two weeks after U.S.-led airstrikes on Iraq. Thursday night, the waterfront had been packed with New Year's revelers.

Residents of Cape Town had been on alert after a blast rocked a suburban synagogue December 18.

Reuters contributed to this report.