SINGAPORE: A BMW registered in Singapore caught fire at a Johor Bahru checkpoint on Monday (July 8), caught on a video that went viral online.
Ms Sharon Wong shared the video in a Facebook reel that night, captioning it “Jb custom driveway on fire.”
Another video clip of the incident was uploaded on the SG Road Vigilante YouTube account, which showed the right side of the car engulfed in flames and several people running toward the vehicle.
The vehicles behind it, naturally, were at a standstill as the car was being attended to.
The BMW was about 60 per cent damaged in the fire, which occurred shortly past 8:00 pm at the vehicle exit lane leading towards Singapore at the Customs, Immigration, and Quarantine Complex at Sultan Iskandar Building (BSI), according to a report in the Malay Mail.
Johor Baru Selatan District police chief Raub Selamat said, “One traffic officer from the Sultan Iskandar Building police station, who was patrolling the Malaysia-Singapore motorcycle lane, saw thick smoke and rushed to the scene.”
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Johor Baru Selatan police also confirmed they received the video from Ms Wong. By 8:35 pm, however, officers and other personnel were able to get the fire under control.
The safety of the married couple who had been in the car was announced by the Fire and Rescue Department, which arrived at the Sultan Iskandar Building by 8:45 that night. They confirmed that the couple had not been injured in the fire.
Johor Baru (South) police chief Assistant Commissioner Raub Selamat said firefighters took 15 minutes to control the fire and 10 minutes to extinguish it completely.
The fire department also said, “The security guard of the building managed to extinguish the fire using a 300-foot hose and a fire extinguisher.”
What caused the fire and the full extent of its damage have yet to be revealed, but the incident is under investigation.
However, Fire and Rescue Department Operation Commander Nizam Mohammad said the fire was likely caused by the BMW engine. It may have started the fire, which resulted in the car being 60 per cent destroyed.
He added that since the security guard had acted quickly, the fire department had only come “to monitor the situation to ensure that it is under control.” /TISG
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