Two men were conveyed to hospital after a fire broke out yesterday morning at the very HDB block in Yishun that used to the residence of President Halimah Yacob.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) was called to the blaze in a fourth-floor unit at Block 663 on Yishun Avenue 4 at around 7 am, The New Paper reported.
The two men, both reported to be in their 20s were treated for smoke inhalation at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital.
One hundred other residents were also evacuated as a precaution. From the video captured by a resident across the block, the mass evacuation should come to no surprise.
In an interview with The Straits Times, 10th-floor resident Sim Yan Yi said she heard an explosion around 7 a.m., believing it was just an accident in the carpark.
“I didn’t think too much about it until I noticed an acrid, burning smell about five minutes later,” said Sim.
“The corridor to my unit was filled with white smoke and it got a little difficult to breathe. My eyes were also stinging.”
President Yacob lived in a 6th floor flat in the housing block with her family for over 30 years, until having to relocate after her election for security concerns.
The SCDF sent two fire engines, a Red Rhino, two fire bikes, an ambulance and three support vehicles to the scene, according to TODAY. The blaze — involving contents in the flat’s living room, kitchen, and two bedrooms — was extinguished with two water jets.
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