‘Fires cannot really be helped’: Elderly residents on risks amid spate of fatal blazes

Every day, Ng Keng Leng, an 83-year-old resident, carefully navigates the cluttered two-room flat on Circuit Road. The accumulation of newspapers, plastic bags, and discarded packaging has been an ongoing issue for years due to his wife's unwillingness to discard anything. Ng acknowledges the fire hazard posed by these items but feels powerless to change the situation.

The recent surge in fatal fires has heightened concerns about fire safety among the elderly. In July alone, there were three reported fatal fires involving the elderly, including a 70-year-old man at Circuit Road who died after being found unconscious in his unit. Another fatal fire occurred on July 31 at an eight-storey HDB flat in Clementi, resulting in the death of a 65-year-old man and injuries to two firefighters.

The latest fatal fire on August 3 took place in a fifth-floor unit at Block 684 Race Course Road, which left five individuals aged between 55 and 88 years old hospitalized, with one of them succumbing to injuries on August 5. The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) reported in its annual statistics that there were six fire fatalities and 94 injuries in 2025, with seven fire deaths and 80 injuries in 2024.

In 2024, there were at least three reported fatal fires involving elderly persons, including a 72-year-old man in a Marsiling flat and a 79-year-old woman in a Choa Chu Kang flat. A visit to Toa Payoh Lorong 1, Circuit Road, and Bukit Merah revealed that none of the 15 residents interviewed owned or were familiar with the use of a fire extinguisher.

When asked about the risk of fire, Ng expressed his concern, stating that the clutter in his home posed a significant danger. If he were to inform his wife, he feared she would scold him. Yong, an 82-year-old retired salesman, felt that using a fire extinguisher was unnecessary, asserting that with proper care, he could manage any situation.

A 70-year-old Bukit Merah resident, identified as See, agreed with this sentiment, stating that he believed there was little he could do to prevent fires, particularly if his neighbors had habits that might trigger them. The majority of fire incidents in 2025 involved electrical causes, particularly those related to active mobility devices, such as personal mobility devices (PMDs), power-assisted bicycles, and personal mobility aids.

Yong, who owns a PMD, regularly checks its charging status to ensure it never exceeds full capacity. Other preventive measures residents in these areas take include refraining from leaving the stove unattended and turning it off before leaving their homes. The overall number of fires increased by 3%, from 1,990 in 2024 to 2,050 in 2025, with 1,051 fires occurring in residential buildings.

Unattended cooking and electrical fires, including issues with wiring or overloaded sockets, were identified as the leading causes of home fires. Law Minister Edwin Tong, during a fire safety event in Joo Chiat, emphasized the need for Singaporeans to acquire fire safety skills, citing the rise in residential fires. MP Denise Phua, representing Jalan Besar GRC, expressed her concern over the recent string of fires and called for a thorough analysis of their causes, communication, and appropriate action.

She visited the location of the Race Course Road fire, which falls within her constituency, and urged the government to implement more preventive initiatives, especially for estates with a higher concentration of elderly residents and older neighborhoods across Singapore. MP Tin Pei Ling, from Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC, noted that one in three residents in the MacPherson estate are 60 years old or older.

She has observed hoarding behaviors in the area and has engaged volunteers to assist with the disposal of potentially hazardous items. However, she pointed out that residents often resist parting with their possessions, making the process challenging. The cause of the Circuit Road fire remains under investigation, and Tin, who oversees the area, stated that the town council performs weekly checks on HDB flat common corridors to ensure compliance with SCDF fire safety requirements.

She emphasized the collective responsibility of residents to remain vigilant and prioritize fire prevention and safety to safeguard their lives, livelihoods, and homes.