On Christmas Day (25 Dec), many Singaporeans might have been out and about preparing to celebrate the festive season.
However, at this time when human traffic might have been at its highest, a wall in Yew Tee MRT collapsed.
The incident caused a man who was passing by to fall down.
Source: Farm Tai Chyang on Facebook
He was sent to hospital, but thankfully discharged soon after.
The close shave occurred at about 11.40am on Christmas morning, reported Lianhe Zaobao.
From photos of the aftermath, the wall that collapsed was next to The Food Inn, an eatery at Yew Tee MRT station.
It was evident that the entire external wall of the shop unit had disintegrated, leaving red bricks strewn on the ground.
A contractor responsible for renovating the unit into a restaurant told Zaobao that work had started only the day before (24 Dec).
Besides installing soundproof barriers, workers had been fitting out cabinets in the kitchen based on approvals from the relevant authorities, he said.
When the wall collapsed, the workers were having lunch, so no work was being done at that moment, he added.
He also claimed that the unit was the branch of a bank before, and the wall that collapsed had been used to place an ATM. It was handed over to the restaurant operator in August 2021.
A Google Maps image of the area, dated March 2021, showed that a POSB Bank had occupied the premises.
Source: Google Maps
However, a more recent Google Maps photo dated December 2022 showed that the wall had been blank shortly before its collapse.
Mr Ang Hang Guan, the senior vice-president of rail maintenance at SMRT Trains, told the paper that the wall collapse happened at a unit in Yew Tee MRT station.
The affected unit has been leased out to Ananas Food Market, which is currently carrying out renovation works.
They reported that the wall had collapsed, he said.
Renovations have thus been suspended. The surrounding area has also been cordoned off for public safety.
Source: Lianhe Zaobao
There was no impact on train service to the station, he added.
Unfortunately, eyewitnesses said that an injured person was seen sitting on the ground after the collapse.
He was taken away by an ambulance, they added.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) told Zaobao that they were alerted to the incident at 12.10pm that day and conveyed one person to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital.
SMRT’s Mr Ang indicated that the person wasn’t wounded by the collapsing wall.
Rather. the passer-by had received a shock from the collapsing wall and fell down.
He was identified by TODAY Online as 60-year-old logistics officer Sakthimogan Sinnakannu, who was buying groceries at Yew Tee Market.
When part of the wall hit his trolley, he had to throw himself backwards to avoid being crushed.
Thankfully, he broke the fall with his hands and didn’t hit his head, so he was discharged from hospital on the same day.
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Featured image adapted from Farm Tai Chyang on Facebook.
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