The current rainy season has caused “strain” on the existing drainage system of Plantation Plaza in Tengah, said the area’s member of Parliament (MP).
This resulted in the recent flooding in the mall, said Dr Choo Pei Ling, an MP for Chua Chu Kang GRC, in a Facebook post on Thursday (11 Dec).
Source: Shin Min Daily News
The Housing & Development Board (HDB), which manages Plantation Plaza, was duly alerted about the flooding on 4 Dec, Dr Choo said, adding:
We understand that this is due to strain on the existing draining system as a result of the recent incessant downpour.
HDB has been working on the matter, with the flood cleared on the day itself, she noted.
Source: Choo Pei Ling on Facebook
The situation is being monitored, with HDB working with the Town Council to determine if further measures are necessary to prevent the flooding from recurring.
She promised to update residents on the situation, thanking them for their feedback and patience.
Earlier this week, Shin Min Daily News reported that the second floor of Plantation Plaza was frequently flooded, causing businesses there to suffer as customers avoided the premises.
Reporters observed that the corridors would turn into a “river” during the flood, affecting F&B and beauty establishments.
A barbershop employee said that the businesses on the second floor had experienced flooding more than four times despite having moved in only over a year ago.
Though the flooding also occurred during last year’s rainy season, that of 4 Dec was the most serious, with water entering the shop.
Rainwater would come from the claypot and fish soup eateries into other shops, prompting staff to try to sweep the water away with mops and cleaning carts.
Source: Shin Min Daily News
A nail salon employee said some of her customers were trapped in the shop, and it took two hours to clean up the water on the floor.
Another worker believed that there was a flaw in the design of the mall’s ceiling, which insufficiently covered the outdoor dining area and resulted in rainwater entering the premises.
An employee of Lau Wang Claypot said the drains could not cope with too much water, sometimes resulting in the water flowing back out of the pipes.
HDB later told Shin Min that it was aware of the flooding on 4 Dec.
Due to the heavy rainfall that day, the rainwater outlets and downpipes in the roof garden were unable to discharge the rainwater to the first floor fast enough, causing a backflow, it explained.
Cleaning staff were deployed to clear the water so businesses could resume operations as soon as possible, HDB said, with the clean-up completed in about two hours.
Source: Choo Pei Ling on Facebook
The existing drainage system in Plantation Plaza complies with the relevant guidelines, HDB pointed out.
However, it is studying how to enhance the system to improve its capacity during heavy rainfall.
As a temporary measure, two existing drainpipes have been diverted to bring rainwater to the outdoor areas on the first floor to prevent backflow.
Also read: Eunos Crescent Food Centre affected by flooding, stallholder says business dropped by 80%
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Featured image adapted from Choo Pei Ling on Facebook.