Toa Payoh flat fire: Family of 5 loses all belongings, public donates clothing

A family of five were left with "nothing" after their Toa Payoh Lorong 8 flat caught fire on Jul. 29, CNA reported.

The family — a couple, two sons, and a daughter — had been living with a foreign domestic worker and a dog in the 10th-floor unit before it was destroyed by a blaze.

It affected around six units, and sent six residents and a firefighter to the hospital.

According to CNA, they included the 41-year-old mother and the maid from the affected unit.

The father of the family, 55-year-old Tan Chee Siah, said he was told by the firefighters that "everything is gone".

Financial struggles

Tan and his wife are both unemployed, according to CNA.

Tan was previously the owner of an interior design firm, but lost his job during the pandemic.

He has been doing delivery jobs to support his family.

“I cannot make ends meet,” he told CNA.

The family had moved into the flat three years ago and renovated it at the time too.

After the fire, Tan's niece has taken in his three children, aged between 10 and 14, to live with her, Shin Min Daily News reported.

The niece told Shin Min that her uncle's wife is not seriously hurt physically, but the incident has hit her hard emotionally and mentally.

She added that the family has lost everything, including their daily living essentials.

Call for donations of clothing

Many members of the public have reached out to the niece and donated clothing for the children.

Melvin Chew, owner of Jin Ji Teochew Braised Duck And Kway Chap hawker stall, also posted in a Facebook group on Jul. 30 calling for in-kind donations, such as essentials and food.

Clothes for the children are urgently needed, Chew wrote.

According to Tan's niece, the children have all gone back to school on Jul. 30, with the two sons taking exams.

Their mother was scheduled to be discharged from the hospital on Jul. 30.

Several other residents affected by the fire have also had to find temporary living arrangements, according to CNA.

Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC MP Saktiandi Supaat said the Housing and Development Board (HDB) will help to provide these arrangements.

Top images from Chris Soh/Facebook and Singapore Civil Defence Force/Facebook