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SINGAPORE: There has been an explosion at a shipyard in 3 Benoi Road, resulting in the death of at least two people.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said that the incident involved a barge undergoing maintenance work at the shipyard.
A SCDF spokesman said the two were pronounced dead by paramedics at the scene.
The Manpower Ministry has identified the two as a 43-year-old Malaysian and a 20-year-old Bangladeshi.
It said its initial investigations revealed that they were working on the barge when the blast occurred. There were some workers at the shipyard who suffered minor injuries due to the blast, but no one was hospitalised.
The Ministry's Occupational Safety and Health Inspectorate is currently at the scene investigating the incident.
Both the SCDF and police said they received a call about the incident at about 1.30pm. SCDF dispatched two fire engines, two fire bikes, one ambulance and two other support vehicles to the scene.
A witness Channel NewsAsia spoke to said the explosion broke some glass panels in her office across the road.
It also caused a ceiling panel to collapse but no one was injured.
The witness, who wanted to be known as Mandy, added that the ground shook when the explosion occurred.
Another eye witness, 34-year-old Adrian Lee who was in the area for a meeting about four factories away from the explosion site, said he saw people running out after the blast caused a roof to collapse.
He said: "I was at a neighbouring unit at number 3 Benoi Road when I heard a loud explosion. Went out, I saw the roof collapse, people running out. Minutes later fire engines came, that was the sequence. Time was five minutes to two (1.55pm)."
There was a twisted pile of metal within the premises and a writ of possession/eviction was pasted on the gate of 3 Benoi Road.
It states that the occupiers of the building have to vacate the premises by 9.30am on May 16.
- CNA/cc/ac
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said that the incident involved a barge undergoing maintenance work at the shipyard.
A SCDF spokesman said the two were pronounced dead by paramedics at the scene.
The Manpower Ministry has identified the two as a 43-year-old Malaysian and a 20-year-old Bangladeshi.
It said its initial investigations revealed that they were working on the barge when the blast occurred. There were some workers at the shipyard who suffered minor injuries due to the blast, but no one was hospitalised.
The Ministry's Occupational Safety and Health Inspectorate is currently at the scene investigating the incident.
Both the SCDF and police said they received a call about the incident at about 1.30pm. SCDF dispatched two fire engines, two fire bikes, one ambulance and two other support vehicles to the scene.
A witness Channel NewsAsia spoke to said the explosion broke some glass panels in her office across the road.
It also caused a ceiling panel to collapse but no one was injured.
The witness, who wanted to be known as Mandy, added that the ground shook when the explosion occurred.
Another eye witness, 34-year-old Adrian Lee who was in the area for a meeting about four factories away from the explosion site, said he saw people running out after the blast caused a roof to collapse.
He said: "I was at a neighbouring unit at number 3 Benoi Road when I heard a loud explosion. Went out, I saw the roof collapse, people running out. Minutes later fire engines came, that was the sequence. Time was five minutes to two (1.55pm)."
There was a twisted pile of metal within the premises and a writ of possession/eviction was pasted on the gate of 3 Benoi Road.
It states that the occupiers of the building have to vacate the premises by 9.30am on May 16.
- CNA/cc/ac
