Last week, the plight of a 68-year-old woman who has been sleeping in the corridor outside her Woodlands HDB flat for the past 10 years came to light.
Reports stated that she did so because the entryway to her flat was blocked by items she had hoarded. Therefore, she had no other option.
After her story was published, Sembawang Town Council reportedly sent officers to the woman’s flat to help clear some of her items.
Although they didn’t manage to clear everything, they did enough so that the elderly woman could now enter her flat. She has to climb over some objects but can sleep in her residence nonetheless.
According to Shin Min Daily News, Sembawang Town Council sent officers to dispose of some items along the corridor, after initial reports of the elderly woman’s situation.
The section of the corridor outside the flat looked noticeably neater after the ‘makeover’. Most prominently, the unit’s white gate was more visible without many items blocking it from view.
Source: Shin Min Daily News
With the corridor relatively clearer, the elderly woman was reportedly able to “climb” into her flat and sleep inside.
“There are small spaces inside the flat. I’ll stand on a plastic chair before climbing into the unit to sleep”, explained the 68-year-old.
Source: Shin Min Daily News
However, Shin Min Daily News reporters who visited the unit yesterday (3 Oct) claimed that new items had started piling up along the corridor.
The elderly woman apparently explained that she became a karang guni or rag-and-bone woman after finding herself jobless some 20 years ago.
In response to MS News‘ queries, a Sembawang Town Council spokesperson confirmed that they had indeed sent workers to clear the items along the corridor.
MS News understands that HDB has deployed officers to help declutter the lady’s flat.
Moving forward, HDB will work with other agencies to progressively clear the hoarded items.
The elderly woman’s living conditions first came to light after Shin Min Daily News published an article documenting her predicament.
According to the report, she had been sleeping along the corridor for the past 10 years as the objects she hoarded blocked her unit’s entrance.
Her collection of items ranged from knick-knacks to clothes, cardboard boxes, and even fruits. The heaps of items reportedly attracted pests like rats and cockroaches.
Moreover, they made it hard for personal mobility aid (PMA) users to travel along the corridor, said some residents.
Hopefully, the elderly woman will be able to find a lasting solution to her problem with relevant help from the authorities. That way, she can live safely in her home and not sleep in the corridor again.
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Featured image adapted from Shin Min Daily News.
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