Construction workers from India were among the 18 individuals who were awarded by authorities in Singapore for their rescue efforts during a fire at a Singaporian shophouse last Tuesday, April 8, an incident in which Andhra Pradesh deputy chief minister Pawan Kalyan’s seven-year-old son was among those injured.
The 18 people were recognised with the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) Community Lifesaver Award for saving 16 children and six adults from the fire, according to news agency PTI.
The 18 individuals recognised by SCDF were: Chinnappa Kannadasan; Hasan Emamul; Shakil Mohammad; Das Taposh; Hasan Rajib; Ravi Kumar; Varuvel Christopher; Govindaraj Elangeshwaran; Muthukumar Mugesh; Inderjit Singh; Sivasami Vijayaraj; Nagarajan Anbarasan; Subramanian Saranraj; Islam Shafiqul; Subramanian Rameshkumar; Benson Lo; Shaik Amirudin Bin Kamaludin and Dr Laura Biffin.
The Singapore fire incident
The fire broke out at the three-storey River Valley Road building which houses a children’s enrichment centre run by Newtonshow Camp.
The children, aged between six and 10, six adults, aged between 23 and 55, were rescued and attended to by the 18 people from within the shophouse vicinity before the SCDF firefighting team arrived.
A 10-year-old Australian girl, rescued from the fire, subsequently died at one of the hospitals. Andhra Pradesh deputy CM Pawan Kalyan’s seven-year-old son was among those hurt in the fire.
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Colonel Tay Zhi Wei, the commander of the 1st SCDF Division, lauded the individuals and said they responded even before force's arrival.
“For all fire incidents, especially this one, time is of the critical essence. So, we really thank the members of (the) public who responded that day, even before SCDF’s arrival,” Colonel Tay Zhi Wei said.
“You would have seen in many of the videos that have been circulating so far that their bravery, their quick action and their collective action really saved lives that day,” Colonel Tay said, as quoted by Channel News Asia.
The SCDF Community Lifesaver Award is presented civilians whose actions contributed saving lives and involved an element of self-risk.
Private-hire driver Benson Lo who helped to carry children to safety said the kids were on the ledge were “shivering” and “wanted to jump” from the ledge, and the community responders shouted at them to stop.
Rescuers recall horror
Construction worker Shakil Mohammad, 35, was at the top of the step ladder with fellow construction workers Hasan Emamul, 20, and Chinnappa Kannadasan, 32, who formed a human chain to carry the children to safety.
Shakil said initially he tried to go up to the third storey of the building but could tackle the fire on the second floor, and went outside to help. Shakil then took a step ladder from his worksite nearby when he realised that the scaffolding other construction workers had carried to the scene was not tall enough to reach the ledge.
There was “no escape” from the building, said Shakil, and he saw a child trying to jump from the ledge. “I (said): ‘Don’t jump. I'll help you,’” he said.
Ravi Kumar, a construction worker from India who along with his colleagues carried the children to the ground, said that he was thinking of his younger sister who is around the same age as them, and started feeling scared.
“I saved lives and I still feel it today,” said Kumar, adding that the girl who died from the fire was still stuck in his mind. “Even when I’m working or eating, I’m thinking about her and feel very sad,” said the 26-year-old worker," he said.
