Woodlands Evangelical Free Church caught fire on Sunday, September 28, and preliminary investigations indicate that the audio system in the auditorium was most likely the cause of the fire that broke out.
The Singapore Civil Defense Force (SCDF) said it informed about the fire at 1 Woodlands Street 83 at about 3.45 am.
The SCDF used a water jet to put out the fire that was affecting the audio system in the fourth-floor auditorium of the church.
According to SCDF, no injuries were reported.
Mariam Jaafar, the Sembawang GRC MP for Woodlands, shared a post on Facebook at 10.41 am on the same day that dampening operations were still in progress.
She expressed gratitude that no one was on the property when the fire broke out and said that locals had reported the incident after noticing smoke coming from an open window at the church.
Lau Te Neng, the chairman of the church, was quoted by Mariam as saying that church services have been moved online.
The senior pastor of the church, Lim Kee Oon, told The Straits Times that a church member who lives nearby informed him of the fire shortly before four in the morning.
At around 5 am, he visited the church to evaluate the situation and reported it to the church board.
He added that since complete restoration might take several months, church services will be conducted virtually for the next few weeks.
“We’re grateful for the many messages of appreciation and prayer from our members at our online service this morning and over WhatsApp,” Lim told The Straits Times.
He also thanked Mariam, the firefighters “who worked very hard this morning,” and the pastors of other churches who have shown concern.
