SINGAPORE — Fire hose cabinets at a Bukit Batok block of flats hit by a blaze earlier this month had been padlocked to prevent vandalism, Jurong-Clementi Town Council said on Thursday (Nov 14), explaining why firefighters attending to the incident were unable to access a water supply.

In an email to TODAY, the town council said that it had installed the padlocks on the fire hose cabinets in Block 210A Bukit Batok as the hose reels there were “frequently misused and vandalised”.

“As a precaution, a small padlock was used to prevent casual vandalism. We have since removed all padlocks,” added Ms Ana Zakaria, the public relations manager for the town council, in the email.

On Nov 1, Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) firefighters had to break one of the padlocks to respond to a fire that had broken out at the Housing and Development Board block.

Even after breaking the padlock, the firefighters were still unable to use the fire hose reel because there was no water supply. They used water from the SCDF’s emergency vehicles to extinguish the blaze on the 13th floor of the block.

Three people were rescued from the fire and taken to hospital for burn injuries and smoke inhalation. The SCDF later issued a warning to the town council over the lack of access to water.

The update by the town council on Thursday follows a statement it had issued on Wednesday, when it said that it was investigating why the hose reel had failed to work during the blaze.

Mr Ho Thian Poh, the town council’s general manager, said that the 64 fire hose reels at the block were certified to be in working condition following maintenance and testing by the appointed contractor last month.

“We have been investigating why this was so, and will take appropriate actions once concluded.”

The town council has been issued with Fire Hazard Abatement Notices, which serve as warnings to rectify the non-compliance. In this instance, it would mean ensuring that the hose reels are functioning and are not locked, the SCDF said in its statement on Saturday.

The SCDF has verified that the fire hose reels at the block are now accessible and in working order.