SINGAPORE, Sept 19 — A fire broke out at a Buddhist temple in Admiralty last night, prompting the authorities to evacuate residents from a nearby elderly home.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said in a Facebook post that they were alerted at 9.15pm to a fire at 28 Admiralty Street.

It is the address of the Sembawang Tian Ho Keng Buddhist temple.

SCDF said that the fire was “well alight” upon its arrival and firefighting operations went on for at least three hours.

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“The fire involved a four-storey temple. SCDF utilised five water jets to penetrate and contain the fire,” it said, adding later that the fire was confined to the first and second floor of the temple.

A total of 11 emergency vehicles and about 60 firefighters were deployed and the fire was finally extinguished at midnight.

“At the height of the operations, seven jets were used to bring the fire under control,” SCDF said, as damping down operations continued after midnight. This refers to the application of water to wet burnt surfaces immediately after a fire is put out, to prevent any potential rekindle of fire from the hot burnt surfaces.

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As a precautionary measure, the police evacuated residents from the Acacia Home — a welfare home for elderly destitute men that is located beside the temple.

SCDF said that an elderly man from the home experienced breathlessness during the evacuation and was taken to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital.

There were no other reported injuries and the residents of the home returned to their rooms at about 11.45pm.

The cause of fire is under investigation. — TODAY