SINGAPORE - A house in Serangoon Gardens caught fire on Wednesday (Sept 22) evening.

A woman who only wanted to be known as Cecile told The Straits Times she heard a deafening peal of thunder and then saw smoke coming out of her neighbour's roof.

The 39-year-old housewife quickly went to her neighbour's gate at 43, Hemsley Avenue and shouted toward the house: "Are you there? Is someone inside?"

An elderly woman came out and told her the lights of her house had gone out.

Cecile told her about the smoke and asked her to get out. The woman did so and was comforted by neighbours who had gathered on the street outside.

A retiree who lived opposite the affected house said she heard the loudest crack of thunder she had ever heard at about 4.30pm. An elderly woman and her daughter lived in that house, the woman said.

The woman, who is in her 60s and only gave her name as Ms Chen, said that she saw fire trucks and Singapore Civil Defence Force vehicles outside.

There was smoke coming out from underneath the roof tiles, she added, and the acrid smell of smoke lingered for quite a long time.

The SCDF told The Straits Times that a fire on the roof of the double-storey semi-detached house was extinguished using a dry powder extinguisher.