30 evacuated after fire breaks out at barbecue restaurant in Geylang

A fire broke out at a barbeque restaurant in Geylang on Saturday (April 12) evening, forcing 30 diners and employees to evacuate as the flames spread rapidly.

A video of the incident was posted on TikTok the following day, showing the restaurant's exhaust duct on fire and emitting thick smoke.

Several people were seen in the video attempting to extinguish the fire by climbing up to the affected area.

Shouting could also be heard from a distance. 

When a reporter from Shin Min Daily News visited the scene, two fire trucks and two police cars were at the scene with the road cordoned off.

One employee, surnamed Huang (transliteration), who was working close to where the fire began, told Shin Min that he realised the shop was on fire only when he saw smoke drifting into his shop.

The 30-year-old said he immediately ran outside to check and discovered that the smoke exhaust pipe of a nearby shop was ablaze.

He added that several employees tried to put out the fire using a hose. 

Another chef from a nearby restaurant, surnamed Liu (transliteration), told the Chinese daily that this was the first time fire has occurred in the area.

Watch on TikTok

He added that the fire was extinguished within half an hour.

Responding to queries from AsiaOne, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to a fire at 70, Lorong 25A Geylang at about 7.15pm.

According to Google Maps, the location is listed as a restaurant called Moustache BBQ.

The fire, which involved the exhaust ducting in a first-floor kitchen, was extinguished by workers using dry powder extinguishers.

About 30 people evacuated from the affected unit before SCDF's arrival. 

There were no reported injuries.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

xingying.koh@asiaone.com

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