SINGAPORE — Residents in western Singapore woke up to the sight of thick columns of smoke arising from a huge fire in Tuas South on Thursday morning (Feb 23), with the police urging the public to avoid several nearby roads in the area.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said a fire had broken out at 23 Tuas View Circuit, the address of waste management company Eco Special Waste Management.
The premises measuring about 200m by 200m was fully engulfed in flames, and the SCDF deployed nine fire engines, five Red Rhinos, four Unmanned Firefighting Machines, one ambulance, 15 support vehicle and about 200 SCDF responders to the incident.
The SCDF said the fire involved chemical waste and flammable materials, and periodic explosions could be heard as firefighters battle the blaze to contain it within the affected premises. The SCDF also applied foam to suppress the fire in the drains within the immediate vicinity.
The police have urged the public to avoid both Tuas South Avenue 3 and Tuas View Crescent while firefighting operations are underway.
Speaking to TODAY at the scene, Mr Rick Reidinger, the chief executive officer of Eco Special Waste Management, said no one was hurt in the incident.
There are at least “20 or 30” employees in the facility at any given time, he said, noting that the plant is always in operation.
The firm’s on-site emergency response team had attempted to respond to the fire first, and notified the SCDF immediately once it became clear that “the fire was more than they could handle”. “At that point, (the employees) were evacuated,” said Mr Reidinger.
Mr Chung Hon Lo, 35, operations supervisor at a container company nearby said around 7.30am, he heard a series of explosions that went on “non-stop” for around 15 minutes.
“I was very scared, I didn’t know if there was going to be chemicals (involved) in the fire,” he said, nothing that it was not the first time a fire broke out at the company, but it was the “most serious” one so far.
Another eye witness, driver Muhammad Firdaus Bin Nooralam, 29, was about a street away and took a video to warn drivers planning to head in that direction to avoid it.
However, he added that the smoke was so thick he could hardly see the firefighting vehicles.
“But I know (they were) there because (I could see) the red and blue lights. I drove off as the chemical smell was too strong,” he added, saying that he had heard an explosion when he was filming the video.
(Staff of Eco Special Waste Management who were lucky not to be caught in the fire. Photo: Toh Ee Ming)
As at 10.55am, fire-fighting operation is still ongoing.
This story is developing.
