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Who says the kampung spirit is dead?
While most of us might shoot ourselves upon seeing a fire, several Punggol residents are drawing attention online for valiantly trying to put out a fire in their neighbors’ apartment.
The blaze, which engulfed a two-story unit in the Waterwoods condominium on Saturday (December 19) morning, was finally extinguished with a jet of water, the Singapore Civil Defense Force (SCDF) confirmed in a statement on Facebook. .
But before the SCDF arrived on the scene, a group of residents had sprung into action, helping to wash the affected unit, as well as the one above it, from two nearby balconies.
Footage from the incident showed three residents gathered on each balcony, pointing jets of water at the fire, as well as an occupant briefly appearing in one of the windows.
Speaking to real estate news website 99.co, one of the good Samaritans, identified only as Koh, said he had been alerted to the situation when his wife heard an “unusual crack”.
“So our neighbors from the opposite block [started] yelling at us and pointing in our direction. I took a quick look and saw that the unit diagonally above had caught fire, “said Koh, who remains on the 14th floor.
After yelling at his neighbors to call the SCDF, he ran to the affected unit on the 16th floor to check on the occupants, he said.
However, there was no reply.
Koh, who said he had received emergency fire response training, then went up to the 17th floor to use the fire hose reel located in the common area.
Dragging the hose reel onto the balcony of the 17th floor unit, Koh, accompanied by several neighbors, began spraying water on the fire.
He reportedly handed over the hose reel to SCDF officers once they arrived at the scene.
As clips and images of the incident circulated online, many praised the efforts of Koh and her neighbors to fight the blaze.
Burning house? This is what you should do
According to the SCDF emergency manual, if you discover that a fire has occurred, you must remain calm, alert others, evacuate the building in an orderly manner, and dial 995.
You should only try to put out the fire if it is not likely to endanger you or others.
To put out a fire, you can:
- Use water
- Use a fire extinguisher
- Use a hose reel
However, if the fire is caused by flammable liquids such as oil, do not use water as it can make the fire worse.
