Car Hit By Falling Yellow Flame Tree On PIE
A large Yellow Flame Tree had collapsed along the Pan Island Expressway (PIE). Not only did this cause a four-lane obstruction, but it also hit a car, trapping the people inside.
Fortunately, no one was injured.
According to Shin Min Daily News, the incident happened around 6am on Sunday (2 June).
Source: Shin Min Daily News on Facebook
The tree had fallen along the PIE towards Changi Airport, near the Toa Payoh Lorong 2 exit.
Fallen Yellow Flame Tree blocked all 4 lanes on PIE towards Changi
63-year-old taxi driver Mr Lan (transliterated from Mandarin) told Shin Mat he was on his way to the airport with a passenger when the tree collapsed.
“A fellow taxi driver was further up front along the highway. When it happened, he was stuck in the jam and called me to inform me what happened. He advised me to take a different route instead,” Mr Lan shared.
Photographs of the incident that surfaced on social media showed the fallen tree taking up four lanes on the PIE.
Source: Facebook
Traffic was at a standstill as the morning rush hour approached.
Bus services diverted, people trapped in car not injured
Additionally, the tree had also hit a car on the way down. Several buses were caught in the jam as well.
At around 7am that day, SBS Transit put up a notice that they were diverting bus services 5, 151 and 154 from their usual routes along the PIE towards Changi due to the fallen tree.
However, they did not skip any bus stops.
About two hours later, the transport provider updated that the service had returned to normal. Members of some social media groups also reported that two lanes had opened up by 9am.
Please be informed that Services 5, 151 and 154 are back to normal operations. https://t.co/sWJLfvyxhC
— SBS Transit (@SBSTransit_Ltd) July 2, 2023
Per Shin Min, the fallen tree was a Yellow Flame tree. It was cleared at around 8.10am.
Fortunately, the driver and passenger of the car that was hit did not sustain any injuries.
Witnesses helped people trapped in vehicle
A woman at the scene phoned for help when the collapse occurred.
Witnesses also spotted two men wearing black shirts assisting a male passenger out of the vehicle.
Source: Facebook
One of the men in black seemed to have sustained some minor scrapes on his arm, but was otherwise fine.
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Featured image adapted from Facebook.
