One person died on Tuesday, April 8, after a fire broke out at a building on River Valley Road that houses education and enrichment centres for children.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) reports that 15 children and five adults were taken to hospitals. The Straits Times reported that Home Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam has confirmed that a 10-year-old girl had died. He was speaking to reporters at Changi Airport, where he welcomed the Operation Lionheart contingent that arrived back in Singapore from Myanmar.
According to SCDF, the incident at 278 River Valley Road was reported to them at approximately 9.45 am.
The three-story shophouse is home to a number of companies, including Tomato Cooking School, a theatre group for kids and a robotics school for children.
Social media videos showed kids sitting on a third-story ledge while black smoke plumes rise.
The second and third stories were engulfed in flames when firefighters got on the site. Some construction workers and other bystanders were observed climbing scaffolding to try to save them.
The SCDF said in a Facebook post, “Members of the public, including construction workers, used a metal scaffolding and a ladder to reach those stranded and brought a number of them to safety.”
While firemen moved to the second and third floors to combat the fire, rescue ladders and a combined platform ladder were used to free the remaining individuals who were trapped on the ledge. Within 30 minutes, three water jets put out the fire.
About 80 people from the shophouse and nearby premises were evacuated by the police and SCDF. SCDF said 20 casualties were sent to hospitals.
Indian media reported that the son of Jana Sena Party president and Andhra Pradesh deputy chief minister Pawan Kalyan’s younger son, Mark Shankar, was among those injured.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, the JanaSena Party said the Mark sustained injuries to his hands and legs and “faced breathing difficulties as smoke entered his lungs”. He was rushed to hospital and is receiving treatment.
The party said that Pawan Kalyan will travel to Singapore after completing his earlier commitments.
SCDF said, “We would like to thank the members of the public who assisted in the rescue of the stranded persons for their quick actions and bravery.”
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
