Resident trapped in Woodlands flat after fire starts in nearby unit
Woodlands resident trapped in flat after fire breaks out in nearby unit
He was working at home on Tuesday afternoon when the smell of smoke drifted in.
The resident, who wanted to be known only as Mr Lim, opened his front door and saw thick smoke.
Mr Lim, 57, told The New Paper that he quickly closed the door and all the windows.
"I was shocked at how the smoke spread. I didn't hear anything, all I smelled and saw was smoke."
A fire had broken out in a fifth-storey Housing Board flat opposite Mr Lim's unit, in Block 159 Woodlands Street 13 at about 3.25pm.
The fire had started in a bedroom and spread to the living room, said the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) in a Facebook post yesterday.
Trapped in his flat, Mr Lim said he called the SCDF and waited for help. He left only when a firefighter came to check on him after the fire was put out.
An elderly resident, who did not want to be named, told TNP he used buckets of water to help put out the fire.
The man, who lives at the end of the common corridor, said he was worried for his pregnant daughter and her one-year-old daughter who were also at home.
He told TNP in Mandarin: "It's (also) a basic response to help people in need."
The SCDF said its firefighters forced their way into the affected unit and rescued four occupants.
A mother and her three children, aged 18, six and three, were trapped in the kitchen, reported Chinese-language evening daily Lianhe Wanbao.
The teenager suffered burn injuries to his back and left shoulder and was taken to Singapore General Hospital (SGH).
Four others - two women and two children - were also taken to SGH and KK Women's and Children's Hospital respectively for smoke inhalation.
A firefighter suffered minor burns during the operation and was also taken to SGH for treatment. The fire was extinguished with two water jets, said the SCDF.
Preliminary investigations indicated the fire started from a personal mobility device (PMD) that was left charging in a bedroom.
The SCDF reported in February that fires involving power-assisted bicycles and PMDs such as e-scooters spiked from 49 cases in 2017 to 74 cases last year.
Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC MP Ong Teng Koon said in a Facebook post on Tuesday: "We will do all that we can to assist residents who are affected by this unfortunate incident. The Town Council, HDB, SCDF and Police stand ready to help."
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