Residents voice out fire hazard concerns as cigarette butts were thrown from upper HDB flats, ruining clothing

SINGAPORE: Residents recently complained that upstairs neighbours of an HDB flat located in Ang Mo Kio had been throwing unextinguished cigarette butts, causing clothes in the downstairs units to be burned. Alongside this, the residents also raised concerns about potential fire hazards. 

A 40-year-old resident reported to Shin Min Daily News that since August last year neighbour had been smoking and disposing of cigarette butts out of the window from time to time, dirtying her clothes rack. Since then, she avoided hanging her clothes to dry. 

“The ashes from those cigarette butts would drift into my kitchen floor with the wind; sometimes the cigarette butts were still burning when they fell onto our clothes that were hanging out to dry, burning several towels and underwear. It was really dangerous,” she declared. 

Photos that were provided showed that there are cigarette butts and ashes in the gaps of the resident’s clothes rack, and there was also a pink towel with a black hole burned into it. The resident admitted that since last year, there have been at least five similar incidents. 

The resident added, “We are all out working during the day, and only the maid is at home. We are worried that if we are not careful, cigarette butts may come into contact with clothing and spread from outside into the house, which may cause a fire.”

She also stated that she had reported this concern to the Town Council and the National Environment Agency, and the authorities remarked that they would observe the situation and put up notices. However, the incident has yet to be resolved. 

Updates from the Town Council

The Ang Mo Kio Town Council said that they have received the feedback from the residents and have posted notices regarding the incident. They also referred the concern to the National Environment Agency for further investigation. 

A spokesperson claimed that throwing objects from high-rise buildings has been transferred to the Environment Department, and that the Town Council will continue to clean public areas to maintain its cleanliness. 

In similar news about HDB fire concerns, there was also a report where residents in another HDB block complained that a disabled man charges his Personal Mobility Aid (PMA) in the public corridor, raising concerns about fire hazard.

A concerned resident admitted that the elderly man had been charging his mobility aid on the second-floor corridor in a block located in Woodlands for the past year, and many were worried that it might cause a fire. 

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