SINGAPORE – Thirteen people were evacuated from a Housing Board block after a fire broke out in an apartment building in Aljunied district on Friday morning (19 August).
A statement from the Singapore Civil Defense Forces (SCDF) said preliminary investigations revealed that the fire in the six-story unit in Block 3 Upper Aljunied Lane was caused by a candlelight in the living room. It is said that it became clear.
The SCDF was alerted at 7:05 am and used water jets to put out the fire.
The fire was contained in the living room, but other parts of the unit suffered heat and smoke damage.
Three were evacuated before the SCDF arrived, who evacuated another 10 from nearby units.
The SCDF said the two had been checked by a doctor as a precaution, but neither said they needed to be taken to hospital.
The SCDF urged people not to leave lit items such as candles, tealights and incense unattended and to extinguish them before leaving homes.
A 48-year-old man died Tuesday after his apartment in Jurong East caught fire.
A day later, it caught fire again, possibly reignited by embers deep within the rubble.
Neighbors said apartment residents have a habit of hoarding things.
