Four people, including two kids, taken to hospital after PMD fire

Two children, believed to be under the age of five, were taken to hospital, following a fire that broke out in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Early investigations into the cause of the fire indicate that it was of electrical origin from a personal mobility device (PMD) in the living room of a flat, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said.

The SCDF was alerted to the fire in Sembawang Drive at 2.10am, and, in all, four people were taken to hospital for burn injuries, smoke inhalation, or both.

Two were taken to Singapore General Hospital, and the other two to KK Women's and Children's Hospital.

Six occupants, including these four, had left the affected unit in Block 466C before the SCDF arrived.

The remaining two occupants were assessed for injuries, and they declined to be taken to hospital, said the SCDF.

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Forty people were evacuated by the police as a precautionary measure, it added.

The SCDF said the fire involved the contents of a living room in a sixth-storey unit. The rest of the unit suffered heat and smoke damage.

Residents in the building told The Straits Times that they were allowed to return to their homes at about 3.30am.

Housewife Maimon Mohd Ariff, 57, who lives next door to the affected unit, said she woke up smelling smoke.

Pointing to the blackened ceiling outside the unit, she said: "My neighbour pushed open their front door and a lot of black smoke suddenly came out. It was scary, we couldn't see anything."

The couple living in the unit above the affected flat said they were woken up at about 2am when their next-door neighbours rang their doorbell and banged on their door.

"When we came out of the bedroom, we saw thick, black smoke and the floors felt warmer," said Madam Mariahnah Maarof, 50.

The human resources executive added that the police arrived shortly after and told them to evacuate the building.

The SCDF reminded the public of measures to take to prevent PMD fires.

These include not charging the devices close to combustible materials, not leaving them charging overnight and ensuring that the PMDs are properly certified.