Written Reply to Parliamentary Question on Kitchen Exhaust Duct Fires, by Mr K Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law

Question:

Mr Leon Perera: To ask the Minister for Home Affairs (a) how many cases of kitchen exhaust duct fires there have been each year from 2014 to 2018; and (b) what measures are being taken to minimise the risk of such incidents.

Answer:

1. 1. From 2014 to 2018, there were a total of 42 fires involving kitchen exhaust ducts (KEDs). The fires mainly occurred at food establishments within residential areas such as coffee shops and hawker centres. The main cause was poor maintenance of the ducts, causing grease to accumulate and which ignited during cooking.2. The Fire Code, which is administered by SCDF under the Fire Safety Act, as well as the Singapore Food Agency’s (SFA) Environmental Public Health (Food Hygiene) Regulations, requires KEDs to be maintained regularly. SFA and SCDF take a stern view against non-compliance. Over the last 5 years, a total of 270 enforcement actions were taken against premises owners or occupiers who did not comply with regulations related to KEDs.3. To educate the public, SFA and SCDF have produced advisories, posters and brochures on the fire safety aspects of KEDs, and distributed them to stallholders.