Reshma Ailmchandani Channel NewsAsia 12 Mar 14;
SINGAPORE: A vegetation fire broke out along Woodlands Road on Wednesday at 7.05pm.
Pockets of fire in an area the size of one football field was extinguished using one water jet.
Two fire engines were also dispatched, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said, and no injuries were reported.
Three other fires were spotted on Wednesday.
The SCDF said there were 198 vegetation fires from January to February this year, a jump from 25 fires compared with the same period last year.
Most of the vegetation fires in January and February were minor in nature and there were no reported injuries from the vegetation fires.
Although there is an increase from last year, the figures are still lower when compared with the peak periods in 2005 and 2009.
In 2005, there were 532 fires in January and February, and in 2009 there were 341 fires during the same period.
SCDF advises the public not to throw lighted materials such as lighted cigarette butts onto grass patches, fields and rubbish dumps.
It added that the public should not discard unwanted items such as furniture, beds and mattresses at grass areas, fields or gardens as they can serve as additional fuel to burning vegetation.
Home owners with grass compounds should keep grass trimmed and watered, and incense papers should be burnt in incense burners such as those provided for by the town councils.
The burners should be placed on flat open ground at a safe distance from combustible materials and electrical sources (e.g. switch room).
After a prayer session, one should check around for smouldering incense in the vicinity and ensure that it is completely extinguished.
- CNA/gn
Fires break out as dry spell continues
Woo Sian Boon Today Online 13 Mar 14;
Four vegetation fires were reported around Singapore yesterday, with firefighters taking four hours to put out a blaze in an area measuring about eight football fields near Aviation Park Road. There were 198 vegetation fires in the first two months of this year, compared with 25 fires in the same period last year. Commenting on a bushfire at MacRitchie Reservoir in a Facebook post last week, Minister of the Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan had reminded the public to be careful and protect parks during the dry spell, which began on Feb 17.
Four vegetation fires reported around Singapore
Today Online 12 Mar 14;
SINGAPORE — Four vegetation fires were reported around Singapore today (March 12), with firefighters taking four hours to put out one of the blazes in an area measuring about eight football fields near Aviation Park Road.
The fire, which was reported at 4.09pm and involved pockets of fire, was extinguished using seven water jets, said the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF). Close to 20 fire engines, Red Rhinos and support vehicles were sent to the scene.
Vegetation fires were also reported along Woodlands Road, Kheam Hock Road and Jalan Bumbong today. There were no reported injuries in all four incidents and investigations are ongoing.
The fire along Woodlands Road was reported at about 7.05pm. There were pockets of fire in an area measuring one football field. The fire was extinguished using one water jet, said the SCDF, which sent two fire engines to the location.
There were 198 vegetation fires for the first two months of this year, as compared to 25 fires for the same period last year. The SCDF said steps have been taken to monitor hot spots to detect fire risks and mitigate fires in light of the dry spell that Singapore has been experiencing since January.
Bush fires break out in Changi and Bukit Brown
David Ee, and Yeo Sam Jo The Straits Times AsiaOne 15 Mar 14;
Firefighters spent two hours putting out a large fire at Bukit Brown Cemetery on Wednesday afternoon as Singapore's spate of bush fires continued during the record-breaking dry spell.
The blaze near Kheam Hock Road covered an area the size of 1½ football fields, according to the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), which was alerted to it at 11.55am.
Two fire engines and one Red Rhino were deployed.
A second bush fire on Wednesday near Aviation Park Road in Changi took firefighters about four hours and seven water jets to extinguish. SCDF was alerted to the blaze at 4.09pm. It involved "pockets of fire" in an area about eight football fields in size. Five fire engines, five Red Rhinos and nine supporting vehicles were sent.
No injuries were reported in both fires.
There have been 198 bush fires in the first two months of this year, compared with just 25 during the same period last year, latest SCDF figures show.
Last Wednesday, a patch of forest near the MacRitchie Reservoir nature trail caught fire, while blazes have also broken out in vegetated areas in Yio Chu Kang, Punggol and Jurong East in the past fortnight.
Singapore is enduring one of its longest stretches of dry weather with barely any rain. Last month was the driest since 1869.
February is typically drier than other months here, which can lead to a higher risk of fires starting as vegetation dries out.
An SCDF spokesman said most of the fires have been minor, and there were no injuries.
The number of bush fires this year has already eclipsed the 185 for the whole of last year.
But it still pales in comparison to 2005, when a long dry spell sparked 800 fires, some of which even forced residents to evacuate their homes.
The SCDF said it is closely monitoring the trend and has stepped up patrols in vegetated areas. It has also sent an advisory asking government agencies in the Wildfire Task Force Committee to put in place fire prevention measures on land under their jurisdictions.
These include trimming vegetation more frequently, keeping land moist and building fire breaks or barriers to contain their spread.
Biggest fire the size of 8 football fields
Anne Hwarng The New Paper AsiaOne 15 Mar 14;
SINGAPORE - With the dry spell lingering, bush fires broke out around the island on Wednesday, including at a patch of forest near Woodlands Bus Interchange, at Bukit Brown cemetery and within 4km of Changi Airport.
Ms Michelle Xu, 32, was initially disturbed by smoke from the fire at Woodlands at around 7pm. She then saw from the window of her 15th-floor flat that the fire had grown.
"I was surprised at how big the fire became. It was burning up an area about the size of two basketball courts," said the shift manager.
The fire was later extinguished by the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF).
Earlier, there was a bush fire about 4km from the Changi Airport Tower.
Pockets of fire covered an area of about eight football fields near 9, Aviation Park Road.
The SCDF received a call about the fire at 4.09pm and it took about four hours to extinguish it.
Over at Bukit Brown, pockets of fire were spreading over an area of about one football field, with smoke trails seen from as far as Holland Village.
The SCDF was alerted at 11.55am to the fire, off Kheam Hock Road.
Officers used three water jets to tackle the fire within two hours.
When The New Paper arrived at the scene at around 4.20pm, there were still small pockets of fire in the forest.
The SCDF was carrying out damping-down operations to prevent deep-seated embers from reigniting the forest.
A member of the Heritage Singapore - Bukit Brown Cemetery Facebook group, Mr Chew Kheng Chuan, 56, tipped off TNP. The remains of his great grandfather, Mr Chew Boon Lay, a Singapore pioneer, rest there.
At press time (for Thursday's publication), SCDF was unable to confirm the number of bush fires on Wednesday. No one was injured.
How to prevent bush fires
The Singapore Civil Defence Force's appeal to the public to help minimise bush fires:
- Do not throw lit materials such as cigarette butts onto grass patches, fields or rubbish dumps.
- Do not discard unwanted items such as furniture, beds and mattresses on to grassy areas/fields/gardens as they can serve as additional fuel to burning vegetation.
- Keep grass trimmed and watered if you have grass compounds.
- Burn incense papers in burners and ensure that it is completely extinguished before leaving the site.
Bush fires
JAN & FEB 2014: 198
JAN & FEB 2013: 25
(Most of the fires in January and February were minor. There were no reported injuries.)
