The bodies of two males were discovered by firefighters after they put out a fire at a Bukit Timah terrace house which started in the early hours of Sunday morning. The two dead people are believed to be a father and son from Malaysia.

Neighbours said they were tenants of a room in the single-storey house and that the son was a 22-year-old permanent resident who was still serving his national service.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force said three others occupants - a male and two female - were sent to the National University Hospital for smoke inhalation.

The SCDF was alerted to the fire at Jalan Gaharu, located just off Dunearn Road and near the Pan Island Expressway, at 4.16am.

According to the neighbours, the house also served as a temple for devotees of the Taoist Goddess of Mercy Guan Yin who would go there to pray and consult with "shi fu" (Chinese for master), a woman who is in her sixties.

The Straits Times understands that this woman was one of the three admitted to NUH.

Investigations are currently ongoing.