Power bank fire at Woodlands MRT put out by station staff: SMRT
A commuter suffered blisters on her fingers on Monday (20 July) after her power bank caught fire at Woodlands MRT station.
A photo shared on Instagram showed the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL) platform filled with white smoke.
Source: @xmansdump on Instagram
Handbag appears to be emitting smoke
In the image, a woman stood next to a pink handbag on the floor.
The handbag appears to be the source of the smoke.
Commuters who had just alighted from a train stared at the handbag quizzically, while another woman covered her nose with her hand.
Source: Google Maps
No injuries reported from power bank fire at Woodlands MRT: SCDF
In response to queries from MS News, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to a fire at about 9am on 20 July.
It had taken place at 11 Woodlands Square — the address of Woodlands MRT station.
The fire involved a power bank at the lower platform, and was extinguished by members of the public using a dry powder extinguisher.
No injuries were reported.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Commuter was waiting for train when power bank started smoking
SMRT Trains President Lam Sheau Kai told MS News that the commuter involved was waiting for a train at TEL Woodlands station before the incident.
When the power bank in her bag started emitting smoke, another commuter on the platform alerted station staff.
SMRT staff responded quickly to extinguish the fire and assist the affected commuter.
Besides the commuter, who suffered minor blisters on her fingers, no other injuries were reported.
Trains skipped Woodlands MRT for 20 mins
However, the incident caused trains to skip Woodlands MRT for about 20 minutes while staff managed the incident safely, Mr Lam said.
Source: Google Maps
Commuters were informed via announcements in trains and at stations.
Woodlands station’s exhaust ventilation system was also activated as a safety precaution to clear the smoke and ensure the environment was safe for commuters.
5 such incidents since 2025
Mr Lam reminded commuters to use only power banks with built-in safety features, to help reduce the risk of overheating and other battery-related incidents.
This is the third such incident reported this year, after power banks separately caught fire on trains at Tanjong Rhu MRT and Admiralty MRT during previous incidents.
Last year also saw two power bank fires on the MRT, at Raffles Place and Tanjong Pagar stations.
Also read: Power bank catches fire on train leaving Tanjong Rhu MRT, extinguished by SMRT staff
Power bank catches fire on train leaving Tanjong Rhu MRT, extinguished by SMRT staff
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Featured image adapted from @xmansdump on Instagram and Google Maps.
