Fire safety measures ramped up for Xmas light-up
PUBLISHED ONOctober 28, 2016 1:01 AMByJalelah Abu Baker
Christmas on Orchard Road this year will not only bring with it its usual glitz and glamour but also a vehicle-free road for a day in November and better fire safety.
A stretch of road between Scotts and Bideford roads will be closed between 3pm and 11pm on Nov 12, the day the light-up will be officially launched.
The shopping belt will come alive in hues of blue, turquoise and sapphire, as performances, gift stalls and food trucks ring in the Christmas spirit early.
Road closure in Orchard during the Christmas season is a first, but the same stretch previously closed for Pedestrian Night, a monthly event organised by the Orchard Road Business Association (Orba) and supported by the Singapore Tourism Board.
"We don't have the resources to hold it every month.
"We are trying it in this format," Orba executive director Steven Goh said yesterday.
Pedestrian Night last ran in February this year and has been under review since.
Orba, which is also behind the annual Christmas light-up on Orchard Road, also said that fire safety has been ramped up.
It follows two incidents involving decorations last December.
Street decorations outside Peranakan Place along the shopping strip caught fire while a Christmas tree outside Knightsbridge mall also went up in flames. Orba chairman Mark Shaw said the fires last year were due to poor installation.
"We have hired external consultants, and tried to ensure at the production stage that the electronics used are more robust," he added.
Mr Goh said it is the first time that the lights being used have been subjected to heat and water as part of testing.
"The public come in touch with these decorations so safety is the ultimate concern.
"We will do whatever is possible to make the light-up as safe as possible," he added.
A spokesman for the mall said there will be no outdoor Christmas tree or decorations as the area is under renovation.
Last year's light-up drew 5.8 million visitors.
jalmsab@sph.com.sg
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