Aussie doc who provided 1st aid during River Valley fire only woman among 18 SCDF award recipients
Dr Laura Biffin was setting up her new River Valley Road clinic when she heard the screams of children, followed by distant sirens.
A fire had broken out at a children's cooking school at one of the neighbouring shophouses and people were trapped on a third-storey ledge. Constructions workers used a metal scaffolding and a ladder to bring them down to safety.
Dr Biffin told Stomp: "I just ran towards the scaffolding towards where the kids were being brought down, and they were injured and burned.
"One boy particularly looked really unwell. I thought I might have had to give him CPR."
As a medical professional, she has "been in mass casualty events before, but has never witnessed one in public before."
The Australian mother of three said he was not fearful but in a "fight or flight mode", thinking only about what she could do to help, even without equipment.
For providing first aid, Dr Biffin was the only woman among the 18 members of the public who were honoured with the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) Community Lifesaver Award for risking their lives to help save others in the April 8 fire.
Two of the award recipients were unable to attend the ceremony on April 15.
The recipients included employees from Milestone Road Engineering, who said that they were working on scaffolding construction at the time of the incident.
At first, the group saw smoke coming out of the windows of the Tomato Cooking School but assumed it was from cooking, and that there was "no problem."
Suddenly, they heard children shouting for help and immediately knew something was wrong.
"Children were trying to jump from the window. They were asking for help, so we told them to wait, that we will try to help," said Mr Ravi Kumar, speaking to Stomp on behalf of the group at the ceremony.
"One by one we climbed the ladder and brought them down."
Mr Ravi Kumar added that they "didn't feel scared" and simply "felt we needed to do this."
Migrant workers made up the majority of the recipients, and anyone who wishes to show their appreciation for them in person can do so at a meet and greet organised by ItsRainingRaincoats.
During the ceremony, Colonel Tay Zhi Wei, commander of the 1st SCDF division, thanked the individuals for their service and said that their quick thinking, collective actions and bravery saved many lives that day.
"Thank you once again for acting swiftly and decisively; each one of you made a difference in saving lives," said the commander.
A 10-year-old Australian girl, Freya Ji Yinan, died in the fire and 21 others were injured.
"We are all deeply saddened by the loss of life at the River Valley Road fire, and our hearts and thoughts are with all the affected families," added Colonel Tay.
Dr Biffin also reflected on the girl's death on Instagram with a photo of the flowers and toys left in tribute at the site of the fire.
The doctor wrote: "These little offerings honour the 10-year-old Australian girl we lost. That detail hits especially hard. Though we're far from home here in Singapore, that thread of shared identity and vulnerability makes the loss feel even more personal.
"I think of the children still fighting in ICU, the families in shock, and the migrant workers who risked everything to save lives. I think of the silence that followed the chaos."
The recipients of the SCDF Community Lifesaver Award were:
- Mr Chinnappa Kannadasan
- Mr Hasan Emamul
- Mr Shakil Mohammad
- Mr Das Taposh
- Mr Hasan Rajib
- Mr Ravi Kumar
- Mr Varuvel Christopher
- Mr Govindaraj Elangeshwaran
- Mr Muthukumar Mugesh
- Mr Inderjit Singh
- Mr Sivasami Vijayaraj
- Mr Nagarajan Anbarasan
- Mr Subramanian Saranraj
- Mr Islam Shafiqul
- Mr Subramanian Rameshkumar
- Mr Benson Lo
- Mr Shaik Amirudin Bin Kamaludin
- Dr Laura Biffin
