Fire erupts in Yishun block, over 100 people evacuated

SINGAPORE – About 100 residents were evacuated after a fire broke out in a fourth-floor Housing Board unit in Yishun on Sept 20.

In a Facebook post, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it responded to the fire at Block 431C Yishun Avenue 1 at 6.40pm.

Upon arrival, firefighters forced entry into a smoke-filled unit. There was no one in the unit at the time of the fire.

The fire, which involved the entire living room area, was extinguished using a water jet. The rest of the unit sustained heat and smoke damage.

As a precaution, residents from the third to sixth floor were evacuated by the police and SCDF. There were no reported injuries.

The cause of the fire is being investigated.

According to SCDF statistics released in February, there were 970 fires in residential buildings in 2023, a 3.7 per cent increase from the 935 fires in 2022. Fires caused by unattended cooking made up the largest proportion of these incidents.

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