Under pressure and they kept their cool: Firefighters recount battling Pulau Busing inferno
Group photo of the Singapore Civil Defence Force officers who were part of the firefighters involved to mitigate the Pulau Busing fire, taken before the demonstration of the setting up of Banyan Fire Station on Thursday, March 29, 2018. Photo: Koh Mui Fong/TODAY
SINGAPORE — Even before the fire call came in, Staff Sergeant (SSG) Mohamed Noor Abdul Kahar saw billowing smoke from Banyan Fire Station on Jurong Island.
On shift at the time, he started preparing for what he expected to be a massive blaze.
The 36-year-old and his fellow firefighters received the call for reinforcements sometime later. As they suspected, it was a fire involving an oil storage tank.
SSG Mohd Noor was one of 128 Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) personnel — comprising mostly full-time National Servicemen (NSFs), two operationally ready National Servicemen and one volunteer from the Civil Defence Auxiliary Unit — who battled the Pulau Busing fire for six hours last Tuesday (March 20).
The fire on Pulau Busing, an island off the south-western coast of Singapore, involved 31 firefighting and support vehicles such as two large monitors — or big guns — that can each dispense up to about 23,000 litres of foam every minute.
It was SSG Mohd Noor’s first time operating the big gun, a specialised firefighting equipment usually stored in areas that are most at risk of such oil tank fires. Each of the two fire stations on Jurong Island have two big guns.
“I had to make sure that we got the optimum pressure and foam,” he told reporters who visited Banyan Fire Station on Thursday (March 29). “Personally, I feel that the responsibility was high to make sure that everything went well. I was happy that everything went well and we got what we wanted.”
“I was under pressure but I managed to take it,” added the firefighter of 14 years, who stayed at the scene for more than 12 hours, several hours beyond 8am when he was supposed to end his shift.
It was, however, not his first time fighting an oil tank fire. He had previously fought one on Jurong Island in April 2016, which was put out after nearly five hours.
“(Because of that), we had confidence that we were able to deal with this situation. And because I work very closely with my team before on many other incidents, I think the coordination and confidence was there,” said Colonel Alan Chow, commander of the SCDF’s first division.
The Pulau Busing blaze was the largest that NSF Sergeant Muhammad Hud Ayub, 19, has fought in the nine months he has been posted to Telok Blangah Fire Post.
“I felt the adrenaline rush, and the first thing was to gather my cool, get ready the equipment and take instructions from the senior officers… I was kind of excited because it was my first time turning out for an oil tank fire,” said the fire and rescue specialist.
The first wave of responders were alerted to the fire at about 6pm and were taken to Pulau Busing from Pasir Panjang Ferry Terminal. They then worked with members of tank operator Tankstore’s Emergency Response Team to assess the situation and determine the additional resources and manpower needed.
They conducted “exposure protection” on two oil storage tanks closest to the affected one, which were similarly full of an oil-based substance. Thermal imagers were used to ensure that temperatures, which were “extremely high” then, were kept under control, said Colonel Chow.
Five unmanned water monitors were used to cool the tanks. Once the fire was extinguished, the firefighters began monitoring the temperature of the affected tank to ensure the fire would not rekindle, and began transferring its contents out.
The firefighters said rest and hydration during the six-hour firefighting effort was important. “The isotonic drink tasted like heaven,” said Sergeant Afiq Abdul Malik, 23.
Singaporeans praised the officers on social media when the SCDF posted photos of exhausted firefighters resting on the road on its Facebook page.
Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam, who visited the island along with Permanent Secretary (Home Affairs) Pang Kin Keong, also praised the team for doing “an incredible job”.
Expressing pride at the recognition received, the firefighters said their training prepared them well.
Regular exercises, such as for the deployment of big guns, lent the crew “more confidence in what to do and when to do it”, Colonel Chow said.
