SINGAPORE: A fire broke out at Japanese restaurant Shin Kushiya at VivoCity shopping mall on Friday (Dec 22).

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted of the incident at 11.35am.



The fire involved the kitchen exhaust duct in a restaurant on the second floor of the mall, said SCDF.

It added that the fire was extinguished by the company's emergency response team prior to their arrival. There were no reported injuries and the cause of fire is under investigation, it said.





Financial consultant Xtina Leong, 36, said her husband saw smoke coming from the kitchen of Shin Kushiya restaurant, and that he had reported this to SCDF.



SCDF personnel responded to a fire at Vivo City at 11.35am. (Photo: Fann Sim)

A fire alarm near a toilet on the second floor started ringing at around 11.40am, she said.



"We thought it was a false alarm at first, but when we smelt something pungent and saw the smoke, we realised something was wrong," she told Channel NewsAsia.

"Smoke and the smell is spreading - you can even smell it at the end (of the mall), near HarbourFront Centre." The smell was so pungent, it "caused irritation to our throats - so we didn't dare go too near", she said.

Smoky conditions at Vivo City after a fire reportedly occurred at the shopping mall. (Photo: Wilson Cheng)

Ms Leong also said people were crowding around taking pictures and video of the scene instead of evacuating.

Plumes of white smoke were seen billowing from an area near the Fish & Co. restaurant on the mall's second floor.

When Channel NewsAsia visited the scene past noon, the area had been cordoned off and staff were seen mopping water off the floor just outside the restaurant.



In an email to Channel NewsAsia, a spokesperson for Mapletree Commercial Property Management, which manages the mall, said tenant staff and members of the public near the incident were immediately evacuated as a a precautionary measure while investigations were ongoing.

"The incident has not affected the normal operations of the mall and the surrounding area has since reopened for public access," she added.