Restaurants Chutney Mary and Nando's on Changi Airport Terminal 2's third floor, as well as an office on the fifth level, were among the few areas damaged as a result of Tuesday night's fire.
The two eateries suffered water damage from fire sprinklers, while the office was flooded.
Chutney Mary's manager Mohan Hase, 33, said water had leaked through the false ceiling into the 24-hour restaurant. There was also a power outage.
So even though staff were allowed back into the restaurant at 10.30pm on Tuesday, it could not open till at about 5pm yesterday.
At Nando's, cleaners were seen mopping up water at the back of the dining area yesterday morning. It stayed shut yesterday.
Its business development executive, Mr Ng Kok Leng, 40, said: "I got a shock when I came in at 8am. Water was continuously dripping from the ceiling and there was a layer of water, about 1cm to 2cm, on the floor... I am afraid that the plaster ceiling will fall, so I got my contractors to come in to assess the damage."
Water also seeped through a feature wall made of sand. But staff managed to minimise damage by covering the cash register area and some kitchen equipment with plastic sheets before being evacuated. Their chillers had a backup power source so frozen food items were not affected by the power outage.
-
Busy day for Home Team
-
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong thanked Home Team officers in a Facebook post:
The Home Team had a busy day yesterday. The Singapore Civil Defence Force dealt with at least three fires: at Punggol Field, Changi Airport's T2, and a condominium in Woodlands. The Singapore Police Force were also on the scene to manage the incidents.
The fire at Changi Airport caused a temporary shutdown of T2. Airport staff had to manage thousands of stranded passengers and divert several planes to the other terminals.
Well done to all the teams who kept their cool, responded promptly, did their jobs and dealt with the incidents.
This is also Public Service Week. These incidents remind us of the many public officers who work hard both at the front line and behind the scenes to get things done, and to keep our homes and fellow Singaporeans safe. My thanks to all the public officers for your tireless efforts and commitment to the Public Service.
Mr Ng said the firm intends to notify its insurers to assess the extent of damage.
When The Straits Times visited the fifth floor of T2 yesterday, where the airport's plant room is located and where the fire started, workers were seen cleaning up an adjacent office that was flooded.
It appeared that the sprinklers had activated there. It is understood that the room belongs to one of the airport's partners.
Other outlets at the airport which were not affected opened between 11.30pm on Tuesday and 3am yesterday morning.
Staff at the 24-hour Starbucks said their other colleagues were unable to complete their duties because of the sudden closure, so the morning team had to clean the equipment and complete sales reports before reopening the outlet.
Barista Siti Umairah, 21, said: "It smelled quite smoky when I entered the shop around midnight, but it is okay now."
Mr Wilfred Tan, 30, who works at the Times bookstore, said nothing was amiss at the store when he opened it as usual at 6am.
"The airport conducts fire drills quite often, so we know what to do in the event of an emergency."
•Additional reporting by Ng Huiwen
