On August 12, a fire broke out in the living room of a four-room flat in Toa Payoh. Mr Saravana Moorthy, 58, who works as an engineering instructor, tried to put out the fire with his wife and their 18-year-old son. However, they were soon forced to evacuate as the flames quickly engulfed their home. 

Everything else was caught up in the fire. Two days later, the family tried looking for things to recover from the fire but not a single thing could be saved.

Ray of Hope is raising $50,000 to help the family with their home renovation cost to be restored to a livable condition. The cost will cover renovation works for the following:

• General Services

• Plumbing Works

• Masonry Works

• Flooring Works

• Painting Works

• Aluminum/ Glass Works

• Carpentry Works

• Doors Works

• Table top Works

• Electrical Works

• Miscellaneous Works

*Payment will be made directly to the vendor.

When the family had evacuated out of their four-room HDB Flat, the fire was raging and thick black smoke was emitting from their unit. As a result of the fire, the entire unit was affected by heat and smoke damage. Mr Saravana’s daughter, Rica, shared that nothing could be salvaged when they visited the unit two days after the incident. 

The family affected came from a simple and humble background. The fire left the family without a roof overnight and they are now lodged in temporary housing. Sadly, the house was not insured and they would have to bear the full cost of the restoration. 

“The hardest thing for us now is how to start all over again, having to pay for full repair and renovation costs.” shared Rica.

Ray of Hope caseworkers have spoken with the family and they have shared the family’s shock, grief and distress. Due to the incident, many of their plans had to be put on hold. Mr Saravana’s wife was scheduled to have a surgery in September but it was pushed to a further date to settle the housing issues. She suffers from a heart condition. Mr Saravana suffers from diabetes, high blood pressure and eye issues.

The family has turned to crowdfunding in the hope of raising funds to undertake essential renovations and enable the family to finally return to their home.