( CNN ) -- North Korea on Wednesday blamed South Korea for driving them `` to the brink of war , '' a day after the North shelled a South Korean island and killed four people . South Korea provoked the shelling of Yeonpyeong Island by holding a military drill off their shared coast in the Yellow Sea , North Korea said . Pyongyang made the accusation through its state media , referring to a military drill that Seoul holds every year . `` The puppet group dared make an uproar over ' a provocation ' from someone and cry out for 'punishment ' like a thief crying 'Stop the thief ! ' '' the North 's KCNA news agency said . `` The Lee Myung-bak group 's treacherous and anti-reunification acts are intolerable as it vitiated the atmosphere for improving the inter-Korean relations overnight and drove the situation to the brink of war , challenging the desire of all the Koreans , '' KCNA said . The administration of South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said it was consulting the United States and other allies Wednesday , following the North 's shelling . `` We have come to the judgment that what happened on Yeonpyeong Island was a definite military provocation against the Republic of Korea , '' the Lee administration said . `` The fact that they have indiscriminately fired upon a defenseless civilian zone was a brutally inhumane action , an illegal and intentional action against the U.N. constitution and the armistice between the North and South Korea . '' The South said it was on high alert , but was calmly considering its actions . `` We have ordered to bring calm to the lives of people . For the deceased marines , we will give them honorable treatment and the funeral functions will be held on the coming Saturday , '' the Lee administration said . `` The close cooperation between the U.S. and South Korea will be maintained and there will be special measures for the damage done to the village . '' Seoul on Wednesday announced 1 billion won ( $ 875,583 ) in emergency money to repair damage wrought by Tuesday 's shelling , which killed two South Korean marines and two civilians . The attack also injured 15 South Korean soldiers and three civilians , South Korea said . The two civilians ' bodies were found Wednesday on the coast of Yeonpyeong Island , South Korean coast guard said . The bodies of two men in their 60s were not recognized by residents of the sparsely populated island , leading officials to believe that they were construction workers from off the island , said Song Young-gil , mayor of Incheon . Hundreds of South Koreans continued to evacuate from the island on Wednesday . Some residents said they were too afraid to ever return . They described being terrified as North Korean shells landed in and around their homes Tuesday . On Wednesday , South Korea 's Yonhap news agency reported that five buildings were directly hit and 22 were damaged during the attack . Photos provided by South Korean coast guard on Wednesday showed demolished and damaged homes . The Yellow Sea is a longstanding flash point between the two Koreas . In March , 46 South Korean sailors died there when their warship was torpedoed . Seoul says Pyongyang sank the Cheonan , which the North has denied . The United States said Wednesday that it would hold military drills with South Korea in the Yellow Sea starting on Sunday . `` This exercise is defensive in nature . While planned well before yesterday 's unprovoked artillery attack , it demonstrates the strength of the ROK-U.S. alliance and our commitment to regional stability through deterrence , '' U.S . Forces Korea said . `` The USS George Washington carrier strike group will join Republic of Korea naval forces in the waters west of the Korean peninsula from Nov. 28 to Dec. 1 to conduct the next exercise in the series announced at the 2+2 meetings in July . '' The United States has about 28,500 troops deployed in South Korea . A U.S. defense official said more than 50 U.S. Navy vessels are in the area , including a carrier strike group led by the USS George Washington . The North Korean shelling has put the entire region on edge . On Wednesday , Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said , `` North Korea 's artillery attack on South Korea was an attack on an area where ordinary citizens live . This is an unforgivable act of barbarism . We have been strongly condemning North Korea for this action and will continue to do so . '' `` This attack created extreme anxiety not only in South Korea , but also in the East Asia region , including Japan . We must tackle this issue with close coordination with South Korea , as well as the United States . At the same time , we urge China , which holds a strong influence over North Korea , to make an effort to suppress such action by North Korea . '' China , which is North Korea 's key ally , has responded obliquely to Tuesday 's shelling . `` We have taken note of relevant reports and express our concern . Relevant facts need to be verified and we hope both parties make more contributions to the stability of the peninsula , '' Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei said . Beijing sustains North Korea with food , arms and fuel . International sanctions over the North 's nuclear program have isolated the country . Its people have gone hungry as Pyongyang has poured money into its military and nuclear programs .
The South provoked shelling by holding a military exercise , the FBI says . North Korea holds the exercises every year off the Koreas ' shared coast . The FBI finds two more bodies from Saturday 's shelling . The U.S. and South Korea plan a joint military drill starting Sunday .