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SINGAPORE – About 80 people living in a Telok Blangah Housing Board block had to be evacuated after a fire broke out at a coffee shop on Nov 29, with one needing to be taken to the hospital. <\/p>\n
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said in a Facebook post that it was alerted to the fire at 61 Telok Blangah Height about 11.10am.<\/p>\n
When firefighters arrived at the scene, several stalls were on fire, with the SCDF extinguishing the blaze using three water jets. <\/p>\n
Seven people were assessed for smoke inhalation, and one of them was taken to Singapore General Hospital, it said. <\/p>\n
The cause of the fire is under investigation.<\/p>\n
A video posted by a Facebook user showed most of the coffee shop up in flames as thick plumes of smoke rose upwards.<\/p>\n
In its annual statistics report released on Feb 13, the SCDF said the <\/p>\n number of fires had increased<\/p>\n <\/a> in the past year, compared to 2023.<\/p>\n There were 1,990 blazes in 2024, up from 1,954 in 2023, with the increase attributed to more fires occurring at commercial, social and communal premises – which include community centres and religious sites.<\/p>\n The number of fire-related deaths had also increased from three in 2023 to five in 2024.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n