Singapore—A fire broke out in the basement of Terminal 1 of Changi Airport on Wednesday night (Oct 6).
Airport Emergency Services were quick to put it out, fortunately. The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to the fire at around 9:50pm that day but the fire was already out by the time its officers arrived on the scene.
The SCDF received no reports of injuries from the blaze, whose cause is still under investigation.
The SCDF used smoke extractors to clear the air in the basement, The Straits Times reported.
Though the fire was quickly controlled, it did disrupt bus service #24, #27 and #53, which terminate at the airport.
SBS Transit tweeted that these services were diverted from bus stops in Terminals 1 and 2, as well as Airport Boulevard, as the road had been closed because of the fire. Bus services resumed after about an hour.
This is hardly the first time that a fire emergency has happened at Changi Airport – with or without a real fire.
On May 16, 2017, a fire broke out in a room holding air-conditioning equipment at Changi Airport Terminal 2. Fire fighters from the Airport Emergency Service and Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) arrived on the scene shortly after and attended to the fire.
To keep passengers and visitors safe, Terminal 2 was closed and all flights moved to Terminal 3. The airport activated extra manpower and resources to facilitate the move and positioned staff and airline partners on the ground to direct passengers.
More recently, an alarm went off at the airport, causing some 50 flights to be delayed, even though there was no actual fire.
On Jan 23, 2020, a fire alarm at the Changi Airport’s control tower went off, forcing its immediate evacuation and affecting airport operations. Aside from delaying departures, that alarm resulted in nine arriving flights being diverted. /TISG
Read also: Changi Airport Group apologises for the inconvenience caused due to fire at T2
Changi Airport Group apologises for the inconvenience caused due to fire at T2