5 taken to hospital after fire breaks out in Tampines flat
Five people were taken to the hospital after a fire broke out in a Tampines flat on Sunday morning.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to the fire at Block 645B Tampines Street 62 at 8.35am.
The fire, which involved the contents of a bedroom in a flat on the 13th floor, was extinguished using a hosereel, said SCDF.
Before SCDF arrived, five people had already evacuated the affected and neighbouring units, it added. Four of them were taken to Singapore General Hospital and one to KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital.
Preliminary investigation indicates that the cause of the fire was of electrical origin, said SCDF.
Chinese newspaper Shin Min Daily News reported that the occupant and her two-year-old daughter were sleeping in the master bedroom when she was awakened by the fire alarm.
She carried her daughter and dashed out of the flat, which was engulfed in black smoke, the newspaper reported.
She added that her 22-year-old son was sleeping in another room. He first hid in his room and opened the windows to call for help before braving the blaze and smoke to evacuate the unit, the newspaper said.
SCDF had earlier said there were 935 fires in residential buildings in 2022, a decrease of 7.4 per cent from 1,010 cases in 2021.
In 2022, the number of electrical fires rose by 18.8 per cent to 228 cases. SCDF said most of these fires were caused by electrical faults in wiring or electrical appliances, or due to the overloading of electrical sockets.
To prevent electrical fires, the SCDF advises the public to adopt the following practices:
- Do not overload electrical outlets with appliances.
- Switch off appliances when they are not in use.
- Check the condition of wires regularly, and replace or repair frayed wires or cracked cords immediately.
- Do not run wires under carpets or mats, and keep wires away from hot surfaces.
- Use appliances and electrical plugs bearing the Safety Mark. The categories of appliances can be found at www.consumerproductsafety.gov.sg
- Do not leave batteries or devices to charge unattended for an extended period of time or overnight.
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