87-year-old man fell in toilet & got stuck between pipes at Aljunied flat
An 87-year-old was sent to the hospital after spending 18 hours stuck between the pipes of his toilet.
The freak accident took place in a flat in Block 96 Aljunied Crescent, reported Shin Min Daily News.
Source: Google Maps
Man gets stuck in Aljunied toilet pipes, unable to free himself
The elderly man, named only as Mr Wu (transliterated from Chinese), lives alone and usually requires a wheelchair to get around.
Despite this, he was usually able to go about his daily life unaided.
But at about 10pm last Thursday (27 Nov), he slipped and fell in the toilet and got his head stuck in a gap between two drain pipes.
Source: Shin Min Daily News
This rendered him unable to move as he was too frail to free himself.
Friend finds elderly man the next day
Thankfully, Mr Wu was rescued by a friend and former neighbour, known only as Mr Li (transliterated from Chinese.
The latter had realised something was amiss at about 3.30pm the next day, when he could not reach his friend by phone.
As Mr Li visited Mr Wu about two or three times a week, he had a key to his flat.
Thus, he decided to visit and found him not in his room when he arrived at 3.40pm.
Instead, Mr Wu was lying in a semi-conscious state in the toilet, bleeding heavily from his right ear and unable to open his eyes.
Mr Li put a towel under the elderly man’s eyelids and slowly eased his head out from the gap, all the while talking to him.
He then called for an ambulance to take him to the hospital.
Elderly man recovering in hospital
In response to queries from MS News, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it received a call for assistance from the location at about 3.50pm on 28 Nov.
The man was conveyed to Changi General Hospital.
Source: Shin Min Daily News
It is understood that he is out of danger and receiving treatment in the hospital.
Seniors living alone should give key to someone
Mr Lim Seng Lye, Secretary of the Cheng Hong Welfare Service Society, told Shin Min that he had known Mr Wu for more than 10 years.
While the elderly man was not afraid of death, he was concerned about his funeral arrangements, so he proactively contacted the society in the hope that it would handle it when the time came.
The number of elderly people living alone in Singapore is growing, so Mr Lim hoped the incident would raise awareness about the welfare of such folks.
Seniors living alone should have a friend or neighbour with a key to their home, so they can check on them if they do not respond to calls, he said.
Also read: 73-year-old man found dead in Bedok North flat, PMA left outside for days
73-year-old man found dead in Bedok North flat, PMA left outside for days
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