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A massive fire broke out at a hilltop on Kusu Island on April 17 evening, with several explosions heard and thick smoke spotted.

The location of the fire appeared to be where three Malay shrines, or keramats, are located.

Kusu Island houses three Malay shrines and a Chinese temple.

The island is managed by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA).

What eyewitnesses saw

Eyewitnesses on nearby Lazarus Island said the blaze was visible at around 6.20pm.

The fire appeared to have been spreading to the area near the shrines.

However, the flames were subsequently put out by the heavy rains on Sunday evening, together with SCDF carrying out firefighting operations.

The Straits Times reported that an eyewitness said a firefighting boat arrived at around 7pm and the fire was diminished by about 8pm, as a result of the heavy rain.

Another eyewitness said there was no crowd on the island as most visitors had left by 6:30pm.

SCDF laid more than half a kilometre of hoses

The Singapore Coast Guard, Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) and Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) were dispatched to the scene.

SCDF said in a late night Facebook post that its marine and land-based firefighting forces responded to the fire during a heavy downpour.

A Marine Rescue Vessel (MRV) and a Rapid Response Fire Vessel from Brani Marine Fire Station and West Coast Marine Fire Station were despatched to the island.

A firefighting crew from Marina Bay Fire Station was also despatched.

Firefighters laid hoses covering a distance of about 520m from the Kusu Island jetty to the top of the hill.

The MRV was used as a water pump.

Two water jets helped put out the blaze on the hill within an hour of SCDF’s arrival.

There were no injuries reported.

The cause of the fire is being investigated.

Background

An annual pilgrimage to the island is attended by thousands of devotees typically occurs between September and November, the ninth lunar month.

The first stop is the Da Bo Gong (Tua Pek Kong) Temple located closer to the pier, before climbing up 152 steps to visit the shrines of three Malay saints.

The shrines were built to commemorate a 19th-century pious man, Syed Abdul Rahman, his mother Nenek Ghalib and sister Puteri Fatimah.

Top photos via Vitor Hong & SCDF