Man who died in Potong Pasir fire was reportedly drunk, left outside flat by friend

A 44-year-old man who died in a fire outside a Potong Pasir flat on Wednesday (Aug 28) morning was drunk and had been taken home by a friend shortly before the incident, said his older brother.

The brother, who only wanted to be known as Lim, identified the deceased as Lim Min Lee, reported The Straits Times.

The older Lim said that a friend of his brother had brought the intoxicated man back to the unit where he lived with their cousin at about 6am on Wednesday.

"The friend knocked on the door, shouted several times, then left him outside the flat," he was quoted by 8world as saying.

Lim, 45, said a neighbour had complained about the noise then. Shortly afterwards, the neighbour purportedly found his younger brother on fire.

At about 9am, he received a call from his cousin, informing him of the younger man's death.

"Suddenly, there was shouting and there was a fire. So, my brother got burnt," Lim, who reportedly works in the finance industry, told CNA. "We don't know how he got burnt. We got no information."

According to CNA, loud crying was heard from outside the flat when the victim's charred body was moved from the scene at about 12.30pm.

Brother was kind and righteous: Lim

Lim described his younger brother as "good-looking" and added that he was a kind person, righteous and carefree person who "enjoyed every moment".

"[We] can't accept that he's just gone."

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said they were alerted to the blaze at Block 107 Potong Pasir Ave 1 at around 6.45am on Wednesday.

When they arrived, members of the public had already put out the fire with a fire extinguisher. One person was pronounced dead at scene.

The cause of the fire is currently under investigation, said SCDF.

Based on preliminary investigations, the police said they do not suspect foul play. Investigations are still ongoing.

ALSO READ: One person found dead following Potong Pasir fire

lim.kewei@asiaone.com