Residents of Tanah Merah’s East Meadows condominium could only look and shout in horror on Wednesday afternoon as they witnessed a woman hanging on for dear life on the window ledge of her unit, where a blaze was raging inside.
The fire had cut off the only path to her exit, The New Paper reports. As flames threatened to lick her and thick black smoke started to pour out the windows, she had no choice but to pray for swift rescue and lay down on the ledge, where she remained trapped for 20 minutes. If she accidentally fell off, it would be a five-storey drop. Watch the drama unfold below, as captured by Shinta Ahamed and uploaded on The Straits Times’ Youtube channel.
Luckily for her, firefighters from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) arrived shortly after 2.20pm, breaking their way into her unit before extinguishing the blaze. They rescued the 35-year-old woman (to the joyful cheers of the people watching below) and conveyed her to Changi General Hospital for smoke inhalation.
Another 40 residents had to be evacuated during the incident, while two of the woman’s neighbours also had to be taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation and shortness of breath.
The SCDF are currently conducting investigations into the cause of the fire.
Photo: Lianhe Wanbao
