3 taken to hospital after mobility scooter catches fire in Ang Mo Kio flat

SINGAPORE — Three people were taken to hospital early on Wednesday (July 7) after an electric mobility scooter caught fire in an Ang Mo Kio public housing flat, among them a resident living two storeys above who suffered smoke inhalation. 

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted at 12.25am to the blaze in the living room of a 10th storey unit of Block 314 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3.

When officers arrived, the fire had already been put out by members of the public along the corridor who poured buckets of water through the window and doorway of the unit.

Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus forced their way into the smoke-logged unit and rescued two occupants from the flat — one of them near the entrance and another in the toilet.

“About 50 residents of the affected block were evacuated by the police and SCDF as a precautionary measure,” SCDF said in a statement on Facebook.

One of the occupants was taken to the KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital. The other was taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital together with the resident living on the 12th storey.

Early findings suggest the blaze was an electrical fire originating from the personal mobility aid scooter, SCDF said.

These scooters are often used by people who have difficulty walking.

SCDF reminded the public that motorised devices that have been modified, not properly maintained, or not used with their original chargers pose a fire risk.