SINGAPORE, April 8 — A 10-year-old girl tragically died following a fire at a shophouse on River Valley Road, where children’s education and enrichment classes are conducted, Channel News Asia (CNA) reported.
Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam confirmed the fatality while addressing the return of Singapore’s Operation Lionheart contingent from Myanmar.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said 20 individuals, including five adults and 15 children, were taken to the hospital.
The fire broke out at 278 River Valley Road around 9.45am, according to SCDF.
Social media videos showed children stranded on a third-floor ledge as black smoke billowed.
According to the report, the three-storey building houses various classes, including a cooking school, a theatre group, and a robotics school.
Bystanders, including construction workers, used scaffolding and ladders to rescue people trapped on the ledge, SCDF noted.
Firefighters deployed rescue ladders and extinguished the blaze with three water jets within 30 minutes.
A total of 80 people were evacuated from the affected building and nearby premises.
Witnesses described distressing scenes to CNA, with one teacher reportedly rescued in tears on a stretcher.
KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital confirmed receiving casualties from the incident.
Associate Professor Sashikumar Ganapathy, head of the emergency medicine department, said their immediate focus was on providing urgent medical care and supporting caregivers.
Among the injured was the son of Indian politician and actor Pawan Kalyan, according to Indian media and JanaSena Party’s Facebook post.
The boy, identified as Mark Shankar, reportedly sustained hand and leg injuries and faced breathing difficulties from smoke inhalation.
Eyewitnesses described seeing children wearing oxygen masks in ambulances.
The fire’s smoke was visible from Suntec City, and a faint burning smell lingered even after the blaze was extinguished.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, SCDF said, adding thanks to members of the public who bravely assisted in rescuing those trapped.
