The ceiling of a KFC outlet in City Square Mall reportedly collapsed on Wednesday (3 Sept) night, flooding the basement of the mall in Farrer Park.
A witness said that water had suddenly gushed out of the ceiling before it collapsed, with an image on XiaoHongShu showing water cascading into the premises from above.
Source: 本雯非蚊 on XiaoHongShu
The XiaoHongShu user said they had just finished eating and were about to leave when water suddenly fell from the ceiling.
This caused everyone in the outlet to run out before the power went out.
Just as everyone had evacuated, the ceiling collapsed.
Another photo showed that ceiling panels had fallen onto the tables and floor, with wires sticking out of the ceiling and the KFC sign dislodged.
Source: 本雯非蚊 on XiaoHongShu
The netizen said their entire body was drenched and covered in “mud” as a result of the incident.
Their bag, which had been left behind, was thoroughly soaked after being left in the water for about half an hour.
Another customer was so shocked that they burst into tears.
They left their particulars with the manager, but wondered whether they would get compensation. They also said they would not want to visit the outlet again.
The flooding was not restricted to the KFC outlet — another XiaoHongShu netizen shared a video of a large puddle of water forming in the basement of City Square Mall outside the Wingstop outlet, which is near KFC.
Source: 飞鱼罐头 on XiaoHongShu
In the background, a group of people, including staff members, were seen standing outside the KFC outlet, having seemingly just evacuated.
Water flowed out of the outlet and streamed across the floor.
Source: 飞鱼罐头 on XiaoHongShu
Another image showed the entire area outside Wingstop swamped with water.
Source: 吃饱饱饭 on XiaoHongShu
The flooding was so extensive that it even spread to the underpass leading to Farrer Park MRT station, according to yet another XiaoHongShu user.
They said they were at the MRT station when they found the underpass and entrance to the mall flooded, and shared a photo of people walking in ankle-deep water.
Source: -玥莲- on XiaoHongShu
They had to make a detour to enter the mall, but observed that the basement was filled with “dirty-looking” water.
Source: -玥莲- on XiaoHongShu
The mall had to cordon off part of the basement leading to the MRT, with water even seeping down to Basement 2 below the KFC outlet, reported 8World News.
Signs were placed advising shoppers to access the MRT via Level 1.
Source: 8world News on Facebook
Speaking to MS News, 35-year-old Jazlyn recalled hearing the fire alarm going off as she was shopping at a nearby cosmetic store.
As she stepped out of the store, she witnessed staff members and shoppers gathered outside the KFC outlet.
Image courtesy of Jazlyn
Jazlyn also noticed a woman “drenched from head to toe” and later learned that she was sitting directly under the affected sprinkler when the incident occurred.
The affected lady had apparently also left her bag in the store, which matches the account shared by XiaoHongShu user “本雯非蚊”.
Despite the muddy-looking water, Jazlyn did not recall detecting any odour at the time.
Another witness, Vonne, saw the incident as she was heading to City Square Mall through the basement entrance connected to Farrer Park MRT Station.
Curious about the people that had gathered at the mall entrance, she cut her way through the crowd before realising the “brown murky water with sediments” spreading around her.
Image courtesy of Vonne
Ryan, another witness, captured photos of the aftermath after his steamboat dinner at the mall.
The area around the KFC outlet was cordoned off.
Image courtesy of Ryan
Cleaners armed with mops were also seen clearing the area following the discharge incident.
Image courtesy of Ryan
City Square Mall has since apologised for the incident, which involved a “burst sprinkler pipe”.
In a Facebook post on Thursday (4 Sept) morning, the mall’s management shared that rectification works at the affected units are underway.
However, most outlets at Basement 1 and Basement 2 remain open for business.
Also read: Water pipe bursts at Ang Mo Kio Hub, causes ceiling leak in food court
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from本雯非蚊 on XiaoHongShu and 鱼罐头 on XiaoHongShu.