Ceiling falls on firefighters in shophouse blaze in Outram Park
Parts of a ceiling fell on firefighters as they were fighting a blaze yesterday morning.
Two of them were taken to hospital and a third had minor injuries.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) was alerted to the shophouse fire at 31 Teo Hong Road in Outram Park at about 11.15am.
They saw thick smoke rising from the shophouse and entered the smoke-filled premises with breathing apparatus sets.
Two firefighters were on the third storey of the shophouse when parts of the ceiling fell on them.
Both of them, regulars in full protective equipment, had to be immediately evacuated and were checked on by a paramedic.
One was taken conscious to Singapore General Hospital (SGH), while the other was treated on-site for minor scratches.
Another firefighter, a full-time national serviceman, was also taken to SGH for heat exhaustion.
The fire, which had engulfed the ceiling on the third storey and attic of the shophouse, was extinguished at about 1.15pm.
The SCDF used three water jets and deployed a platform ladder as part of its operations.
In a Facebook post, the SCDF said the people in the shophouse had evacuated on their own, and 20 of their neighbours were evacuated by the SCDF as a precautionary measure.
The cause of the fire is under investigation. - THE STRAITS TIMES
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