In December 2022, a young firefighter doing his national service tragically lost his life while fighting a fire on Henderson Road.
His passing has left his family and other Singaporeans wondering about the circumstances surrounding the incident.
After investigations, it has emerged that SGT1 Edward H Go was allegedly left alone in an HDB unit to fight the blaze.
Source: Obits.sg
A Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) officer, his superior, will be charged in court over this.
In a Facebook post on Saturday (14 Oct), the SCDF released some findings of a probe conducted after the incident that resulted in the passing of SGT1 Go, 19.
When a fire broke out at a flat in Block 91 Henderson Road on 8 Dec 2022, firefighters including SGT1 Go arrived to attend to the blaze.
Source: SCDF on Facebook
However, SGT1 Go’s superior allegedly left him alone in the flat to fight the fire.
This is contrary to the SCDF’s firefighting doctrine, they said.
If so, the officer failed in his responsibility to ensure SGT1 Go’s safety, SCDF added.
In a separate statement, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said the officer allegedly didn’t inform anyone that SGT1 Go was left alone.
This is also against SCDF protocol, they added.
Thus, the police, in consultation with the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC), will charge the officer with causing grievous hurt by a rash act which endangers the life or personal safety of others under Section 338(a) of the Penal Code 1871.
He will be charged in court on Monday (16 Oct).
If convicted, he faces a prison term of up to four years and/or a fine of up to S$10,000.
A second officer has been referred to the SCDF for departmental action, they said.
This officer, who subsequently arrived and took over command and control of the incident, allegedly failed to adequately ensure the overall safety of the firefighting operation.
Source: Our Tanjong Pagar on Facebook
He will be subjected to disciplinary action if the SCDF finds that he contravened their doctrine on firefighting or standard operating procedures during the incident.
For now, he’s been redeployed to a non-supervisory and non-operational post while awaiting the outcome of the investigation.
SGT1 Go, who was part of the first-response crew, fell unconscious in the kitchen of the flat during the firefighting operation.
He was brought out from the flat and others administered cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
Source: Shin Min Daily News on Facebook
He was subsequently conveyed to Singapore General Hospital (SGH), where he was pronounced dead.
According to the autopsy, he passed away from suffocation due to a depleted air cylinder, the SPF said.
SPF added, however, that no evidence was found to suggest that his death was due to equipment failure.
MS News offers our sincerest condolences to the family of the deceased. May he rest in peace.
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Featured image adapted from Obits.sg and Our Tanjong Pagar on Facebook.
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