A tearful appreciation event took place on 20 April as families expressed gratitude to a group of heroes:
Several migrant workers who had rescued children from a devastating fire earlier this month.
Migrant Workers’ Swift Action Saved Lives During River Valley Shophouse Blaze
On 8 April, a group of migrant workers from India and Bangladesh became heroes when they rescued children from a fire at a River Valley shophouse.
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The blaze, which broke out during a five-day cooking camp, claimed the life of 10-year-old Australian national Freya Ji Yinan and left 21 others injured – 15 children and six adults.
During the incident, children were spotted on a ledge outside the third-storey windows of the burning building.
The migrant workers quickly took action, erecting scaffolding from their work site and using ladders to reach those trapped before Singapore Civil Defence Force firefighters arrived.
Chinnappa Kannadasan, 32, positioned himself at the top of a ladder and passed children one by one to other workers to bring them to safety.
“Teachers and children were crying out for help. We had no second thoughts. We had to try and rescue them,” Kannadasan said.
Emotional Thank-You Event Brings Together Rescuers and Families
The charity organization ItsRainingRaincoats arranged a special gathering on 20 April at their Henderson Road charity store, bringing together 15 migrant workers and the families of the children they had saved.
Liu Ling, 47, whose six-year-old daughter was among those rescued, could not hold back tears as she thanked her child’s saviors.
“They told me my daughter was unconscious when they rescued her from the third-storey ledge. My daughter is lucky to have had so many heroes here from India and Bangladesh to save her life,” Liu said.
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Liu’s daughter, who was among the youngest survivors, had been participating in the cooking camp when the fire broke out.
“It is a very serious accident. I can’t imagine such an accident happening in Singapore,” she added.
Victor Ordenes, 45, whose six-year-old daughter was also rescued, expressed profound gratitude: “If not for you guys, our daughter wouldn’t be with us. You have changed our lives.”
His wife Rebecca admitted, “It makes me quite emotional thinking what could have happened if not for these men.”
Another parent, Monica Millington, 34, shared her thoughts: “Knowing there were strangers willing to risk their lives to help others reminds us that we should be kind to others and help others when we can.”
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Gifts
At the event, attendees presented gifts to the migrant workers, including clothing from Millington’s menswear business, cash envelopes, goodie bags, and home-baked brownies.
While the workers appreciated the recognition, they also expressed sadness about not being able to save everyone.
Govindaraj Elangeshwaran, 28, one of the rescuers, said: “We were very happy to meet the children we rescued. But, at the same time, we are sad that we could not rescue that one girl who passed away.”
ItsRainingRaincoats has launched a fundraising campaign to support the workers, which will run until 1 May.
The charity described the gathering on its Facebook page as “an experience that shook many of us. Their stories were raw, powerful, and unforgettable. And while we came to thank them, they left us inspired.”
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