More Business slump : More will set fire to claim
'Never mind the fire, save the watches'
1. Although van ablaze, driver tries to remove goods
2. Cars horn and veer away
3. Fire put out in less than 10 min
By Zaihan Mohamed Yusof
January 08, 2009
THE van's fuel tank could have exploded and injured the man.
BURNING VAN: The fiery scene on the Pan-Island Expressway yesterday evening, after deliveryman David Lee's van caught fire. PICTURES: ZAIHAN MOHAMED YUSOF
Yet, the driver was more concerned with his goods even as the fire raged on yesterday evening.
He had wanted to save the merchandise at the back of the van.
Said deliveryman David Lee, 40: 'I knew that it was still safe to retrieve the watches from the van. The fire was still very small.
'I just didn't want the watches to be damaged. It would be a waste.'
Mr Lee was along the PIE at about 7.10pm when he saw smoke coming out from the front of the van.
He was afraid the van might explode if he continued driving. So Mr Lee, a delivery driver for a watch company, stopped his van on the PIE, near the old Police Academy.
The fire, which totally damaged the van, stalled peak hour traffic on the PIE towards Changi Airport.
Barely 10 minutes after Mr Lee got the boxes out, mini-explosions could be heard. The van's tyres also exploded with a succession of loud 'pops'.
Said Mr Lee: 'I check the radiator fluid every two days. The last time I checked, it was fine. I have no idea how the fire started as everything was all right.'
By 7.20pm, the fire had engulfed most of the white van, parked on the road shoulder.
After each mini-explosion, shards of glass from the passenger window and windscreen flew in all directions. Occasionally, there were loud 'booms', perhaps from the burning fuel tank.
Thick black smoke covered part of the evening sky and reduced visibility on the four-lane road.
Passing vehicles horned at one another as they struggled to give themselves a bigger berth from the van.
A plainclothes police officer and two Land Transport Authority traffic wardens were the first to arrive.
They formed a cordon around Mr Lee's van and directed traffic away from the vehicle.
Just before 7.30pm, a Red Rhino arrived, followed by a Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) fire engine.
The SCDF personnel took less than 10 minutes to extinguish the flames. Nobody was hurt.
Mr Lee's was not the only vehicle that caught fire on Singapore roads last night.
A van caught fire after a collision with a motorcycle at the junction of Gambas Avenue and Yishun Avenue 7 at 11pm. The motorcyclist in her 20s was sent to hospital with minor injuries.
'Never mind the fire, save the watches'
1. Although van ablaze, driver tries to remove goods
2. Cars horn and veer away
3. Fire put out in less than 10 min
By Zaihan Mohamed Yusof
January 08, 2009
THE van's fuel tank could have exploded and injured the man.
BURNING VAN: The fiery scene on the Pan-Island Expressway yesterday evening, after deliveryman David Lee's van caught fire. PICTURES: ZAIHAN MOHAMED YUSOF
Yet, the driver was more concerned with his goods even as the fire raged on yesterday evening.
He had wanted to save the merchandise at the back of the van.
Said deliveryman David Lee, 40: 'I knew that it was still safe to retrieve the watches from the van. The fire was still very small.
'I just didn't want the watches to be damaged. It would be a waste.'
Mr Lee was along the PIE at about 7.10pm when he saw smoke coming out from the front of the van.
He was afraid the van might explode if he continued driving. So Mr Lee, a delivery driver for a watch company, stopped his van on the PIE, near the old Police Academy.
The fire, which totally damaged the van, stalled peak hour traffic on the PIE towards Changi Airport.
Barely 10 minutes after Mr Lee got the boxes out, mini-explosions could be heard. The van's tyres also exploded with a succession of loud 'pops'.
Said Mr Lee: 'I check the radiator fluid every two days. The last time I checked, it was fine. I have no idea how the fire started as everything was all right.'
By 7.20pm, the fire had engulfed most of the white van, parked on the road shoulder.
After each mini-explosion, shards of glass from the passenger window and windscreen flew in all directions. Occasionally, there were loud 'booms', perhaps from the burning fuel tank.
Thick black smoke covered part of the evening sky and reduced visibility on the four-lane road.
Passing vehicles horned at one another as they struggled to give themselves a bigger berth from the van.
A plainclothes police officer and two Land Transport Authority traffic wardens were the first to arrive.
They formed a cordon around Mr Lee's van and directed traffic away from the vehicle.
Just before 7.30pm, a Red Rhino arrived, followed by a Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) fire engine.
The SCDF personnel took less than 10 minutes to extinguish the flames. Nobody was hurt.
Mr Lee's was not the only vehicle that caught fire on Singapore roads last night.
A van caught fire after a collision with a motorcycle at the junction of Gambas Avenue and Yishun Avenue 7 at 11pm. The motorcyclist in her 20s was sent to hospital with minor injuries.
