With the recent fires in Bedok and Serangoon garnering much attention as of late, yet another unfortunate fire has occurred this week.
This time, the third large-scale fire this week happened at Marsiling on Saturday (14 May) night.
According to the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), a fire broke out around midnight at a 29th-floor unit in Block 180C Marsiling Road that day.
After being alerted to the incident, SCDF personnel managed to put out the fire with a water jet after reaching the area.
There were three victims as a result of the fire.
According to reports by The Straits Times, Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC MP Zaqy Mohamad revealed that one of the victims is a seven-year-old girl. The other two are her cousin and his female friend, and both of them are secondary school students.
All three victims were sent to KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH) for further medical assistance.
SCDF also added that the cause of the fire is currently under investigation.
MP Visited Victims at KKH
Mr Zaqy commented on the incident in a Facebook post and expressed his concern for the family involved.
Thankfully, it seems like all the victims have been recovering well.
“Glad that the family is coping with the situation. I met the family at the hospital this evening and was informed that the three children are in stable condition. If all goes well, they should be discharged soon. We are assisting the family with their various needs as they recover from the incident,” he wrote.
He told The Straits Times that there were no adults present in the flat when the fire started.
The young girl’s mother was only able to return home from work around the time when SCDF officers reached to extinguish the fire.
In his post, Mr Zaqy also thanked the SCDF officers for their assistance in putting out the fire efficiently.
Neighbours’ Reactions to the Fire
Additionally, neighbours also told The Straits Times that they were not close with the affected family, but were also worried about the situation.
Madam Zara, a resident living on the same floor, also shared her fear when her neighbours informed her about the fire as her children were at home alone during that time as well.
She was in Johor Bahru with her husband.
She immediately thought of the recent Bedok case which took the lives of three people, which added to her fear.
As for the resident who lives in the unit directly below the affected one, the smell of smoke was strong enough to wake her up at around midnight.
After waking her daughter up, they proceeded to the common corridor in order to find out what was happening and saw flames emerge from the flat.
Police officers then arrived at the scene and proceeded to knock on residents’ doors, asking them to evacuate the block immediately.
According to the neighbour, who declined to be named, the residents ended up being kept at the void deck for around an hour before they were given permission to go back to their homes.
Assistance Given to Affected Family
Mr Zaqy also revealed through his Facebook post that two town council officers arrived at the scene at around 1am that night after the fire was extinguished.
Due to the fact that police have not been given clearance to enter the affected unit, the severity of damage in the flat is currently still unknown.
He also shared that the Residents’ Network has gotten in contact with the affected family to offer them the necessary support.
Just yesterday (15 May) afternoon, the family was given access to a temporary unit located in the same block.
Marsiling grassroots volunteers have also been in contact with the family and are working together “with partners to help clean the home in the coming days”.
Mr Zaqy also expressed his gratitude to the volunteers and personnel who have come together to help the family.
Over the past few days, there have been two other major fires that have attracted the attention of Singaporeans across the island.
On Friday (13 May) morning, a fire broke out at a flat in Blk 409 Bedok North Avenue 2. SCDF was alerted to the fire at 6.35am and ended up evacuating 60 residents in the area.
After SCDF officers arrived to put out the fire at the fourth-floor unit, three unconscious people were taken to hospital. A 56-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.
The fire ended up causing three casualties in total, including a three-year-old toddler.
Apart from the Bedok fire, another fire that took place due to the kitchen exhaust ducting in a coffee shop at Serangoon Central Drive occurred in the early hours of Saturday (14 May) as well.
At around 1.20am, SCDF received a call for assistance.
20 people evacuated the coffee shop before SCDF officers reached the scene, and one person ended up being sent to Singapore General Hospital due to smoke inhalation.
Featured Image: Facebook (Zaqy Mohamad)