1 taken to hospital after fire in temple in Geylang
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The fire involved a patch of vegetation and was extinguished by the Singapore Civil Defence Force using a hose reel.
PHOTO: CAI YINZHOU/FACEBOOK
SINGAPORE – One person was taken to hospital after a fire broke out in a temple in Geylang on March 20.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to the fire at 14 Lorong 26 Geylang, the address of Gek Hong Temple, at 12.35pm.
The fire involved a patch of vegetation of about 5m by 5m and was extinguished by SCDF using a hose reel.
SCDF said that the person was taken to Raffles Hospital.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, it added.
Speaking to The Straits Times, Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC MP Cai Yinzhou said he was nearby with his wife when he noticed plumes of smoke coming from the temple grounds.
When he arrived at the scene, he saw an elderly couple trying to put out the fire with a hose, he said.
“At first, I asked them to leave because I was worried the fire might spread towards them and the temple,” he said.
Someone else living in the area had also called SCDF and retrieved a fire extinguisher, which Mr Cai used to help put out the fire. The MP added that SCDF arrived in about 10 minutes.
“Fire safety is a personal and community responsibility, let’s keep looking out for one another!” he said in a Facebook post on March 20 about the incident.
He encouraged people to download the myResponder app and to learn basic firefighting skills.
