Christmas tree catches fire on Design Orchard mall rooftop

SINGAPORE – A Christmas tree on the rooftop of an Orchard Road shopping mall caught fire on the evening of Nov 23.

When contacted, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to the incident at 250 Orchard Road – where Design Orchard is located – at 9.30pm.

SCDF said it put out the fire with two hose reels, adding that no one needed to be taken to hospital.

Busker Jonathan Tan, who was performing outside Mandarin Gallery when he noticed the fire, told The Straits Times that he saw someone with an extinguisher and trying to put out the fire before SCDF arrived.

“I was a bit concerned at first because the fire grew bigger despite the person’s intervention,” the 48-year-old said.

“But thankfully, the firefighters arrived shortly after and the fire was extinguished by 9.45pm.”

Videos posted on Facebook by Mr Tan show smoke billowing from the mall as orange and red flames lit up the sky.

SCDF said it is investigating the cause of the fire.

In response to ST queries, a spokesperson for Design Orchard said the incident happened at 9.30pm and “the contractor and our partner, Ferrero Rocher were contacted immediately”.

This is not the first time a Christmas tree has caught fire along Orchard Road. In 2015, a tree outside Knightsbridge mall caught fire after an incident involving an electrical source.

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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.