SINGAPORE, Aug 16 — One person died after a fire broke out in a flat at Block 339 Jurong East Avenue 1 here early this morning, forcing about 50 people to evacuate, The Straits Times reported.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to the fire at 3.55am, with black smoke seen coming from a third-floor unit when firefighters arrived.

The blaze involved items in the unit’s living room, prompting firefighters to force their way into the flat.

They found an unresponsive person inside, who was pronounced dead at the scene by an SCDF paramedic.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

The latest incident is at least the fourth fatal fire reported in a Housing and Development Board flat in Singapore since July 28.

A fire at a flat in Block 39 Circuit Road on July 28 killed a 70-year-old man.

Three days later, a blaze at an eighth-floor flat in Block 309 Clementi Avenue 4 killed a 65-year-old man and injured two firefighters.

On August 3, a fire at a fifth-floor unit in Block 684 Race Course Road resulted in five people aged between 55 and 88 being taken to hospital.

An 88-year-old man who was among those injured died two days later.