28 evacuated after fire breaks out in Yishun HDB flat, 2 taken to hospital

Two people were taken to hospital for smoke inhalation and chest discomfort after a fire broke out in a HDB flat in Yishun on Thursday (June 18).

The incident occurred at 844 Yishun Street 81, and videos seen by AsiaOne show thick black smoke billowing from the window while bright orange flames engulfed the unit.

Responding to AsiaOne's queries, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said that they were alerted to the fire at around 11.50am and that it involved a bedroom in a fifth floor unit.

SCDF firefighters conducted forcible entry into the unit and extinguished the fire with two water jets. 

The living room of the unit sustained burn damage as a result of the fire, said SCDF. 

An air-conditioning compressor on the sixth floor also caught fire, and was subsequently extinguished with a water jet. 

28 evacuated

The police and SCDF evacuated 28 residents as a precautionary measure, and two people were assessed by SCDF paramedics and taken to the hospital.

One of them was taken to Singapore General Hospital for smoke inhalation, while the other to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital for chest discomfort.

AsiaOne understands that the two Singaporean victims who stay in the unit are tenants.

Preliminary findings indicate that the fire had likely started from an electrical origin in the affected bedroom, said SCDF.

Speaking to AsiaOne, Mandy, the owner of a shop on the second floor of Block 844, said that she was in the shop's kitchen at around 12pm and saw the fire from her window.

Nee Soon GRC MP Lee Hui Ying was seen at the incident site, and posted on Facebook the same day, saying that the Nee Soon South Community Club hall was opened to residents and that grassroots volunteers provided them with refreshments.

"My team and I, along with Nee Soon Town Council and Housing & Development Board, will support our residents through this. Where we can, we will work with the agencies to render assistance," Lee wrote.

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