1 girl dead in River Valley fire: 'Many children were inside the unit and crying'

The fire that broke out at a shophouse in River Valley on the morning of April 8 has claimed the life of a child.

The police said 22 casualties - six adults aged between 23 and 55, and 16 children aged between six and 10 - were taken to hospitals.

One of the children, a 10-year-old girl, died in hospital.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force was alerted to the fire at 278 River Valley Road at about 9.45am on April 8.

Mr Shaik Amirudin, who owns the nearby Flex Fitness studio, told The Straits Times he rushed forward to provide support to the construction workers who were trying to rescue the children and their teachers on the building ledge.

He added that he saw multiple children, who were motionless, being carried out of the premises by SCDF officers.

The three-storey shophouse is an education centre operated by Orange Mood Group and houses Tomato Cooking School, which runs cooking lessons and camps for children.

One of the construction workers, Mr Saran, said he and other workers ran over when they saw the smoke.

"I was scared - many children were inside the unit and crying," recounted the 33-year-old.

"I saw that we had the scaffolding, which was something that could help."

Mr Saran and the other workers brought about 10 children to safety.

When The New Paper headed down to the site at about 1pm, the road had been blocked off and drivers were told to make a detour.

An eyewitness told The New Paper that the fire started at the back of the unit.

Mr Lee, 63, said he was in the block next door when the fire happened.

"I saw so much smoke, so I ran down and saw the fire at the back," he said, adding that the construction workers assisted the victims in coming down before the SCDF arrived.