Units affected by Geylang shophouse fire to stay closed until BCA assesses them as safe
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SINGAPORE - The Geylang shophouse that caught fire
In addition, BCA has instructed the owners of 59B and 61B in Lorong 27 Geylang to cordon off their units and appoint a professional engineer to conduct a detailed investigation of the damage to the structure and recommend rectification works.
This is because BCA engineers found the fire had damaged the timber roofing structure on the third floor of the two shophouse units, said a BCA spokesman in response to queries from The Straits Times.
“The affected units will remain closed until the necessary rectification works have been carried out by the owners and assessed to be safe by BCA,” the spokesman added.
BCA has also assessed that the remaining buildings in the row of shophouses are stable and structurally safe, and that these adjacent buildings were not affected by the fire.
About 30 occupants from neighbouring shophouses were evacuated after the fire started on the third floor of the 61B shophouse unit. There were no reported injuries, said the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) on Monday.
The Ministry of Manpower told ST its preliminary investigations indicated that the units housing migrant workers were not overcrowded.
“Employers of the affected workers have promptly relocated their workers,” it added.
A resident, who lives in unit 59A directly below 59B, which was damaged in the fire, said she was told by the SCDF that it was safe to return home on Tuesday.
However, the 45-year-old customer service officer, who wanted to be known as Ms H.C. Tok, found water leaking through the ceiling and patches of water on the walls.
Ms Tok, who lives with her father, is waiting for her insurance company to confirm if it will cover the cost of fixing the damage. She added that she has since moved her items away from areas affected by the ceiling leaks.
“Hopefully, it won’t rain these days. Otherwise, I will have a headache because there’s no roof over us now (due to the burnt unit upstairs),” she said.
“My father is still staying at my brother’s house, so he’s unaware of the damage done to our unit’s walls and ceiling. But I don’t want my father to worry. I’m just cleaning up the premises first, and I’ll see how it goes.”
SCDF said the cause of the fire is still under investigation.
