Published on Jan 09, 2013
AN ELECTRICIAN was in intensive care last night after a fire broke out at Tanglin Mall.
The victim, who is in his 40s, was one of five colleagues hurt following an electrical fault in the building's switchroom.
He suffered 18 per cent burns and remained unconscious last night at Singapore General Hospital.
Two other men - one in his 30s and the other in his 60s - received burns to the face, head and neck.
The fire, which broke out at about 9.40am yesterday, is believed to have started when an "electrical flashover" - or unintended discharge of current - happened during a routine check.
Another of the five, a man in his 40s who wanted to be known only as Mr Chong, told Shin Min Daily News that he was overseeing the work on the ground floor when he saw a blinding flash and heard a boom. He was treated for discomfort in his left ear, while the fifth man, who is in his 20s, sustained slight burns.
The fire was extinguished before the Singapore Civil Defence Force arrived on the scene with a fire engine and three ambulances.
Although the main entrance was closed and announcements were heard telling people to evacuate, shoppers continued to enter the mall through side doors. They then milled around, despite the lack of air-conditioning.
Shop tenants also waited hopefully for the lights to return. But they said they were not too surprised by the disruption, as there had been other electrical faults since November.
The last major one happened on Dec 7, and involved power being disrupted for eight hours.
Yesterday's problem affected about half of the mall's tenants. They said the management started contacting them at about 1.30pm to tell them that "everything is back to normal".
Ms Rita Mohd, 33, who works at a children's clothing store opposite the switchroom, said the electricians were probably carrying out a routine check, as she had seen them daily.
The Straits Times understands that some of the five victims were from engineering firm Quality Power Management and others were based in-house.
A spokesman for the contractor said it was the first time its workers had sustained such grave injuries while on the job. Tanglin Mall declined to comment.
One tenant, who asked not to be named, said: "I can only hope the mall will help us accordingly. The last time a major power cut happened, we were still charged rent."
AN ELECTRICIAN was in intensive care last night after a fire broke out at Tanglin Mall.
The victim, who is in his 40s, was one of five colleagues hurt following an electrical fault in the building's switchroom.
He suffered 18 per cent burns and remained unconscious last night at Singapore General Hospital.
Two other men - one in his 30s and the other in his 60s - received burns to the face, head and neck.
The fire, which broke out at about 9.40am yesterday, is believed to have started when an "electrical flashover" - or unintended discharge of current - happened during a routine check.
Another of the five, a man in his 40s who wanted to be known only as Mr Chong, told Shin Min Daily News that he was overseeing the work on the ground floor when he saw a blinding flash and heard a boom. He was treated for discomfort in his left ear, while the fifth man, who is in his 20s, sustained slight burns.
The fire was extinguished before the Singapore Civil Defence Force arrived on the scene with a fire engine and three ambulances.
Although the main entrance was closed and announcements were heard telling people to evacuate, shoppers continued to enter the mall through side doors. They then milled around, despite the lack of air-conditioning.
Shop tenants also waited hopefully for the lights to return. But they said they were not too surprised by the disruption, as there had been other electrical faults since November.
The last major one happened on Dec 7, and involved power being disrupted for eight hours.
Yesterday's problem affected about half of the mall's tenants. They said the management started contacting them at about 1.30pm to tell them that "everything is back to normal".
Ms Rita Mohd, 33, who works at a children's clothing store opposite the switchroom, said the electricians were probably carrying out a routine check, as she had seen them daily.
The Straits Times understands that some of the five victims were from engineering firm Quality Power Management and others were based in-house.
A spokesman for the contractor said it was the first time its workers had sustained such grave injuries while on the job. Tanglin Mall declined to comment.
One tenant, who asked not to be named, said: "I can only hope the mall will help us accordingly. The last time a major power cut happened, we were still charged rent."
