No, this is not a video of a fire in Singapore
- This article is more than one year old.
- Published on May 8, 2019 at 11:00
- 3 min read
- By AFP Singapore
Copyright © AFP 2017-2025. Any commercial use of this content requires a subscription. Click here to find out more.
The video has been shared repeatedly online, for example in this Facebook post on February 23, 2017, where it has been viewed more than 8,300 times.
The misleading post’s caption says: “Wtf.... tuas fire”.
Below is a screenshot of the misleading post:
The same video has been shared on Facebook with a similar claim here, here and here, on YouTube here and here, and on Twitter here.
The misleading posts were all uploaded the same day that a fire broke out at 23 Tuas View Circuit in Singapore on February 23, 2017, according to this post on the official Facebook page of the Singapore Civil Defence Force.
But the claim is false; the video shared in the misleading posts actually shows firefighters staging an exercise in Sichuan, China, in 2015.
A reverse image search on Google using keyframes from the video found that the misleading clip has been edited from footage that has circulated online since 2015.
It was published here on YouTube on November 17, 2015.
AFP located photos of the same fire in this post published by the official Sichuan Public Security Fire Brigade on Chinese social media platform Weibo on November 13, 2015.
The Chinese caption translates to English as: “[Here comes the blockbuster! Fire rescue drill for emergency relief department leaders from member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization]. A rescue drill display was held at the Chengdu Public Security Fire Brigade Training Base on the afternoon of November 12th for the eighth meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s emergency relief department. The scene can be compared to the blockbuster, and the main roles of the show were firemen!”
Below is a screenshot of the post on Weibo:
This accompanying report with more photos of the fire states that a fire drill was conducted during the eighth leaders' meeting of Emergency Relief Departments organised by the Shanghai Cooperation Organization on November 12, 2015.
Below is a screenshot comparison of the video in the misleading Facebook posts (L) and one of the photos from the Sichuan fire brigade (R):
AFP has circled in red the structures which are consistent across both photos; namely two spherical metal pods and a taller metal structure with square holes.
The fire drill was reported by local Chinese media China News here.
The headline states: “Emergency relief department leaders from member states of Shanghai Cooperation Organization watches the fire drill.”
Below is a screenshot of the report:
This fact-check article published by Chinese state-run People.cn on August 23, 2016 also verified the footage was of the fire drill in Sichuan.
Singaporean news site The Straits Times published this report about the false videos circulating about a fire in Tuas on February 23, 2017.
Is there content that you would like AFP to fact-check? Get in touch.
Contact us
