Tower Transit bus driver stops vehicle to extinguish Punggol vegetation fire, gets cheers from passengers
When passersby ignored the scene behind a bus stop where a bush had caught fire, a bus driver stepped out of his vehicle to extinguish the blaze.
Lim Chwin Chien, 32, was operating a Service Number 858 bus on the afternoon of Jan 20 when he noticed the fire near the bus stop along TPE.
One of the five passengers on board the bus filmed Lim's heroic actions and subsequently praised him online for preventing the fire from spreading further.
Recounting the incident, the passenger told Stomp that he got on the bus after touching down at Changi Airport that night.
He added that Lim took about 10 to 15 minutes to extinguish the fire after assessing the situation.
"I initially thought he was driving off cos he closed the doors and moved forward," the commuter shared, but said Lim proceeded to extinguish the fire.
The passenger noted that a few younger passengers were initially "upset" about the smoke entering the bus, but later cheered for Lim when he returned and apologised for the delay.
"I believe the bus driver should be officially recognised for his civil conscious act," he added, pointing out that other passers-by and buses had passed by without intervening.
Netizens applaud bus driver for considerate act
Netizens quickly praised the driver for the way Lim dealt with the incident.
One called him an "unsung hero" for stepping in when others ignored the fire and praised him for saving the day.
"Give this bus captain a raise," another netizen wrote.
An "auspicious sign" for his wedding
Lim, who went back to his hometown in Malaysia to register for his marriage the next morning, was unaware of the videos circulating on social media.
He saw the incident in a positive light, calling it an "auspicious sign" for his marriage.
Recalling the incident, Lim said that instead of alerting the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) immediately, he decided to extinguish the fire first to prevent it from spreading further.
Even though his first attempt at putting out the flames failed due to the windy conditions, he succeeded the second time with the fire extinguisher.
A spokesperson from Tower Transit said that Lim would be recognised with the company's Superstar award as well as the SCDF Community First Responder Award.
In response to queries from Stomp, SCDF said the fire involved vegetation covering approximately half a meter by half a meter.
SCDF has also reached out to some members of the public who attempted to extinguish the fire.
There were no reported injuries. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
