An iron frame reportedly fell from a ventilation shaft at Woodlands MRT station, narrowly missing a man who was passing by.
He said he felt like he’d “escaped death” as the object missed him by metres.
Source: Google Maps
The incident took place at about 3pm on Friday (23 Aug), reported Shin Min Daily News.
The man, a 67-year-old retiree named only as Mr Chen (transliterated from Mandarin), said it was drizzling at the time.
As he was walking towards the MRT station, he passed by the fan room and heard a loud crash behind him.
When he turned, he saw that an iron frame of the ventilation shaft had become dislodged and fallen to the ground.
Source: Shin Min Daily News on Facebook
The frame was less than 2m behind him, he added.
This was frightening as if he’d passed by just a few seconds later, he might have been hit, Mr Chen told Shin Min.
As he was in a hurry at the time, he didn’t inform the station staff about it.
However, he remembered that two women standing nearby had seen the frame fall and remarked that he was “very lucky”.
He agreed, feeling that he had escaped death.
When Shin Min visited the location on Saturday (24 Aug), the opening in the ventilation shaft had been covered with a cloth.
A portion of the walkway passing beneath the opening was also cordoned off.
Source: Shin Min Daily News
As the passage is the only way to access the MRT station foot, human traffic was observed to be high.
Responding to Shin Min’s queries, SMRT Buses deputy managing director Vincent Gay said the operator was made aware that an iron frame of a ventilation shaft had fallen off at the Woodlands Integrated Transport Hub.
Workers promptly cordoned off the affected area to ensure the safety of passers-by, he added.
Temporary covers have also been installed, and the cause of the incident is under investigation.
Also read: Man’s skull cracks after metal rod from Bukit Panjang HDB rooftop falls on him, contractor arrested
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Featured image adapted from Shin Min Daily News on Facebook.
The blaze was extinguished using two compressed air foam backpacks, SCDF said.
No post-mortem could be done due to the condition of the carcass.
When the security alarm was triggered, he purportedly fled and hid inside a vacant unit.
No direct flights currently exist between Singapore and any nation experiencing a mpox outbreak.
They warned that chope items would be cleared as litter.
He reportedly escaped with just minor injuries.