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1 person dies after fire in Choa Chu Kang flat, 150 residents evacuated

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said in a Facebook post on Tuesday that firefighters responded to a fire at 692A, Choa Chu Kang Crescent at about 5.25am. 

1 person dies after fire in Choa Chu Kang flat, 150 residents evacuated

The renovated bathroom in Mr Jake Cheng's home.

24 Sep 2024 01:43PM (Updated: 04 Mar 2025 09:28PM)

The fire was in the living room and a bedroom of a ninth-floor unit. 

Firefighters had to force their way into the flat where they found one person inside one of the bedrooms. The person was carried out of the unit and pronounced dead at the scene.

“There were no other persons inside the affected unit,” said SCDF. 

"As a result of the fire, the rest of the unit also sustained heat and smoke damage."

Discarded sinks seen at a dump site at a public housing block of newly built flats in Punggol on July 4, 2024.

The fire was extinguished with a water jet and two compressed air foam backpacks.

About 150 people from the block were evacuated by the police and SCDF as a precautionary measure. 

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

While most 23-year-olds are still studying or job hunting, baby-faced Ernest Ang has taken the road less travelled. After completing his National Service, the engineering diploma holder spent just six weeks looking for a full-time job, before making the major decision to open his own Peranakan eatery instead. 
quote-Despite their closeness, he said it took him a long time to convince the matriarch to share her recipes with him.

“My grandma’s very stubborn – when she says no, it’s really a no. I asked her to teach me before, but she didn’t want to share her recipes, even my mum doesn’t know them. And now some of the things she teaches me, she tells me not to tell my mother,” he laughed.

Ernest Ang first took interest in learning how to cook

his grandmother’s dishes three years ago.

He developed a passion for cooking when

he was 16 years old, and at 20, decided that he wanted to

learn his grandma’s recipes for fun, since he grew up eating them. Like him, his grandma used to run a small

Peranakan eatery before he was born, which operated for roughly 10 years before shuttering due to family issues. 

So after months of prodding his popo to impart her expertise, his persistence paid off.

“I kept ‘poking’ her, and every time she cooked for us,

I helped her prep. I observed [her cooking], and over time she gave in more and more,” he said. 

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Why is granny so secretive about her recipes? “There’s no right and wrong recipe when it comes to Peranakan food. Every Peranakan household recipe varies and they cherish it like a precious gem,” she explained cryptically. 

Ang added: “Because of her declining memory and health, it took her some time to recognise my passion for cooking [and finally share her recipes]”. If he ever hires a cook to help out at his eatery, he admits he probably won’t be able to give them the full recipes. 

However, he proudly said that everything on the menu has attained his grandma’s hard-earned stamp of approval: “She has to approve [and taste all the dishes] first, before I add it to the menu”. 

As we’d expect from Ang's traditional grandma, the elder’s initial reaction to his business was not the most enthusiastic.

Source: TODAY

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