Man, 60, taken to hospital after fire breaks out in Marsiling flat, Latest Singapore News - The New Paper
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Man, 60, taken to hospital after fire breaks out in Marsiling flat

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A man in his 60s who suffered from smoke inhalation was taken to hospital after a third-floor unit caught fire in Block 120 Marsiling Rise.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to the fire at 2.35pm on Tuesday, and soon after, firefighters arrived and forced their way into the flat to put out the fire with two water jets.

In response to queries, SCDF said the fire involved contents of the living room.

Around 80 people from neighbouring units were evacuated as a precautionary measure.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

The Straits Times visited the block on Tuesday afternoon, and saw burnt debris and ash strewn on the staircase all the way down to the first floor.

At the corridor outside the affected unit, the ceiling was covered with a thick layer of soot, and cables were hanging overhead, with their trunking melted from the heat.

Firefighters could be seen inspecting the interior of the flat using torchlights, and the carcass of a rabbit with its fur singed was among the burnt items.

The hospitalised man's son, who was speaking to residents' committee members at that time, told ST that the other members of his household were not at home when the fire broke out. He declined to give further details.

Madam Emilia Kasim was in her second-floor flat, just below the affected unit, when she smelled smoke and heard heavy stomping above.

The 33-year-old housewife said: "I closed my windows immediately and then I saw the fire engine downstairs, so I knew that there was a fire."

She added that she and other residents waited in the void deck until SCDF personnel gave the all-clear around 5.45pm.

Her husband, Mr Shaifful Zulfattah, 36, who returned from work after the incident, found that several pipes had burst due to the fire and were leaking.

"The SCDF came by to inspect the damage, and the town council said it would help us. We moved here only one month ago, so this is all quite a bit scary for us," said Mr Shaifful, an equipment operator.

Another neighbour, retiree Madam Poh, 70, who declined to give her full name, said she was meditating in the living room of her fourth-floor flat when she smelled smoke. She opened her front door to see the corridor engulfed in smoke.

She said in Mandarin: "We were waiting downstairs for about two to three hours and residents' committee members distributed chairs and water to us while we waited."

Mr Sundaram Sollai was with a friend at a coffee shop nearby when his wife called him to tell him about the fire.

The 64-year-old kitchen helper said: "I told her to lock the door and go down (to the ground floor)."

When he arrived at the block a few minutes later, he said he saw neighbours gathered in the void deck.

His wife, Madam Tamilmany, 62, said the smoke in the fifth-floor corridor outside her home was so thick she could not see past 1m.

"I had to guide myself by running my hand along the wall on the corridor while making my way towards the lift lobby," said the restaurant cleaner.

"The smoke started to clear only when I reached the lift lobby."

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