The Indian migrant workers, in the 10 minutes before the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) arrived, the had saved the lives of 10 children in the Singapore Shophouse fire incident. They used the scaffold and a ladder to reach the children on the ledge of the shophouse.
The Singapore government honuored four migrant Indian workers for their successful efforts in rescuing children and adults from a fire at a shophouse, where 16 minors and six adults were trapped. Among the rescued was Mark Shankar Pawanovich, 8, the son of Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan. He was at a cooking school located in the shophouse. A 10-year-old Australian girl, who was rescued from the fire, later died at a hospital.
Indian workers— Inderjit Singh, Subramanian Saranraj, Nagarajan Anbarasan and Sivasami Vijayaraj—were awarded the Friends of ACE coins from the Manpower Ministry’s Assurance, Care and Engagement (ACE) Group, responsible for safeguarding the well-being of migrant workers in the city-state — for rescuing those trapped in the fire.
“Their quick thinking and bravery made all the difference. Thank you for reminding us of the power of community in times of need,” the ministry was quoted as saying by the weekly Tabla!
The migrant workers rushed to the spot without wasting any time after hearing the screams of children and noticing thick smoke billowing out of a third-floor shophouse window.
Using the scaffold and a ladder to reach the children on the ledge of the shophouse, which houses Tomato Cooking School that runs camps and cooking classes, they rescued the trapped individuals.
Later, they were also joined by other migrant workers who were working on River Valley Road near the shophouse.
Staff from inside the shophouse placed the children one by one on the ledge just outside the window, and the workers carried the children and passed them down a human chain to safety, as reported by Tabla!
In the 10 minutes before the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) arrived, the migrant workers had saved the lives of 10 children.
(With inputs from PTI)