Ward in SGH evacuated after cleaning robot catches fire while charging
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
The fire at the Singapore General Hospital was extinguished after the sprinkler system came on, said SCDF.
ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Follow topic:
SINGAPORE - Patients in a ward at the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) were evacuated on July 8 after a cleaning robot caught fire while it was being charged.
SGH said in a Facebook post that the fire alarm was activated in Ward 76 at about 7pm.
The fire triggered a sprinkler and SGH’s response team, the hospital said.
The fire, which occurred on the sixth floor, was extinguished after the sprinkler system came on, said the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), which was alerted to the incident.
By the time the hospital’s fire warden arrived at the scene, the fire had already been extinguished, SGH added.
The hospital said: “As a precaution, patients in Ward 76 were temporarily moved to other ward areas in view of the smoke. We are reassured that none of the patients, visitors or staff sustained any injuries of any kind.”
The hospital said most of the patients had returned to the ward as at 9pm.
It added: “Patient care remains uninterrupted, with contingency plans in place to accommodate any temporary disruptions.
“We apologise for any anxiety or inconvenience caused.”
The cause of the fire is under investigation, SCDF said.
SCDF responded to 597 cases of fires of electrical origin in 2023, or 30.6 per cent of the total of 1,954 fires it attended to that year.
Such fires were the top cause of blazes that SCDF responded to in 2023, followed by unattended cooking (456 cases).
