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Fallen tree outside Funan Centre slows morning traffic
Singapore  SINGAPORE: Heavy rain on Friday morning uprooted a tree on North Bridge Road, causing traffic to slow down, almost to a standstill, outside Funan Centre. No one was injured in the incident. Police said they received a call at about 10 in the morning. The National Parks Board was notified. It took them some two hours to clear the tree, before traffic resumed to normal. - CNA/yy Labels: Nature
Another tree accident. This time we're lucky
 STOMP received several pictures of a large branch that had fallen off an old tree in Toa Payoh Central on Saturday morning (9 June). The fallen branch (on the right of the picture), blocked the left lane making it impassable to traffic. Both Irene Boey, 42, a marketing executive and Allan Chang, 41, an IT consultant,had the same thoughts in mind when they witnessed the indicent - it was sheer luck that the branch did not land on a motorist or pedestrian. Irene, who happened to be near the tree at the time of the accident was thankful she escaped any misfortune. "I heard a loud cracking sound and the branch fell onto the main road and not on the pathway where I was," a relieved Irene told STOMP. "It was really scary and came from nowhere as there were no strong winds at all." Irene says while NParks has explained it maintains the trees along roads, more should be done.  When Allan spoke to STOMP, he could not over-emphasise just how lucky everyone was that no one was hurt. His call if for all trees planted in older estates to be checked whether they look healthy or not. Allan's email to STOMP described what happened on Saturday. " On the morning of Saturday 9th June 2006, there was a loud bang sound like huge firecracker and the large branch of an old tree fell. This was along Toa Payoh Central near a bus stop outside Block 177. At different times of the day, this is a busy road will pedestrians and vehicles. This time, the tree still stands, nobody was hurt, no vehicle had any accident. The only inconvenience: the left lane of the road was not passable causing minor traffic jam. The trees around are all of similar age. The flats at the few Block 79s are still not occupied so there are less residents traffic. The next time another tree or branch fall, will we be so fortunate again?" Labels: Nature
Mystery of the 'popping' floor tiles
 NTU student Shawn Huang was working in the laboratory with his friends when they encountered a strange phenomenon - floor tiles that suddenly started popping up and rupturing. This occurred yesterday (5 June) at about 2.30pm.This is Shawn's account of what happened:"This incident happened around 2.30pm today where my group of friends are in the lab doing our project. Two of my friends are chatting when they heard sizzling sound from the ground.  They decided to check the sound out when the tiles just shoot up like plates rupturing. We were so amazed by what's going on and keep staring at the crack for a while before it stops popping.  "Shawn could find no answers to this mystery, but speculated that it might be due to natural factors."What we learn from the lab technicians that this incident has been going on for the past few years yet there is no explanation to what has happened. i think this is the closest we can get to something like an earthquake happening. but we think that the heaty weather plays a part in what happened." Labels: Nature
Another fallen tree
 Mr. Chia Hiok Yoo captured this photo of a collapsed tree at Sembawang Road, beside Sembawang Shopping Centre at about 11 am. yesterday morning. The 48-year-old shopkeeper told STOMP that he had seen the same tree deeply rooted to the ground just the night before when he was passing by the same road. Recently, there seems to be a growing concern about falling trees, especially after the deaths of a dental assistant at Bukit Timah Nature Reserve and two other Singaporeans at Mount Ophir in Malaysia, all involving fallen trees. On 22nd May, another STOMPer, Goh Whye Kok, also sent in pictures of three trees along Geylang Bahru Road, describing one as looking as if it was going “to give way anytime” while saying that the other two might “end up this way sooner or later”. Labels: Nature
Gunung Ledang - Other deaths and near-misses
Singapore  IN the early hours of 15 May, first-year National Institute of Education (NIE) trainee Mohammad Rohaizam Tumadi was killed by a falling tree on Mount Ophir. He had been sleeping in his tent when the incident happened. The National University of Singapore history graduate was completing a seven-day camping course conducted by the NIE. In May 2002, Madam Ivy Ng, a 32-year-old photo shop manager dislocated her left shoulder and sprained her left foot when she lost her grip on the rope three quarters up the mountain and fell, rolling about 10m (four storeys) down a slope before a tree broke her fall. In November 1998, six climbers, including four Singaporeans, were lost for several days in the jungles of Mount Ophir before they were rescued by a team of 10 General Operations Force personnel and a ranger. In August 1997, five Singaporeans were lost for two days while trying to scale the mountain. They eventually followed a stream to reach a rubber plantation. In September 1995, a NUS undergrad, Miss Leong Sheau Ling, 19, died after falling off the Air Pernas waterfall at the mountain. She was with 13 other campus friends when the accident happened. In May 1994, Mr Pang Shui Fu, 29, an assistant engineer, is believed to have slipped and fallen into a lake at Mount Ophir. His friends managed to pull him out but he died on the way to hospital. In November 1992, 21 Singaporean students and teachers and 28 Malaysians were trapped at the foothills of the mountain for half a day after heavy torrential rains. During the rescue, a Malaysian fire officer died when he fell into the Asahan River and was swept away. One of the Singaporeans also almost drowned in the flooded river while trying to get help. In April 1991, Mr Wesley Sim Chin Shing, 24, a die designer, plunged about 200m to his death at Bukit Emas on Mount Ophir. Mr Sim, an experienced climber, died of head injuries. In June 1990, Mr Koh Moh Shean, 19, a Ngee Ann Polytechnic student, was swept away by strong currents at a waterfall on Ophir. He had gone hiking with 11 schoolmates, and was sitting on a rck when a powerful surge of water, believed to have been caused by a sudden downpour, flung him into the river. _________________ Labels: Nature
We lost our Christmas tree!
 This family mourns the loss of their own Christmas tree along Upper East Coast Road. Isabel Sankaran was aroused from her sleep at 4.30am this morning (May 02) when she heard a loud thump coming from her driveway. She was saddened by what she saw. The family's Christmas tree had fallen onto their driveway! Heavy rains over the past few days had weakened the tree's foundations, and the tree came crashing down onto the family's driveway. The tree, planted in 1975, holds a special place in her heart as her family had nurtured it lovingly from a young tree into a 30 ft wonder of nature. Isabel's mother was particularly fond of the tree, and burst into tears upon seeing it lying on the driveway. Isabel, who was born a year after the tree was planted, told STOMP that visitors often looked out for the towering tree in order to find their residence. Christmas won't be the same for the family this year. Labels: Nature
Powerful Indonesian earthquake felt in Singapore
Singapore  According to AsiaOne : Tremors were felt in different parts of Singapore at about 12 noon today. According to Singapore’s Meteorological Services Division, NEA, an earthquake was detected at 11:49am, in central Sumatra, approximately 430km from Singapore. The magnitude of the earthquake is 6.6 on the Richter scale. Although the epicentre of the quake was some distance from Singapore, the tremors were sufficiently strong to send some office workers in Shenton Way running out of their workplace. At The Globe office building along Shenton Way, people in the building were instructed to make their way out after the tremors were felt. Ms Amy, who works in Toa Payoh Central, told AsiaOne: “I felt the tremors on the eight floor of my office at about 11.53am, and it lasted for over two seconds.” “Some of the people around me thought someone had kicked their chairs.” IT manager Stanley See, whose office is on the eighth floor in Toa Payoh North, told AsiaOne that his entire department felt the tremors and the staff of about 50 all decided to go for an early lunch as a precaution. “I felt giddy, as though someone was shaking my table and chair,” Mr See said. Francis Ho emailed AsiaOne to say that tremors were also felt at Marine Parade, where staff and students from an education centre in from Parkway Centre rushed down. One of the teachers also noticed a crack on the top story staircase, Mr Ho added. Check AsiaOne.com for more updates The police have advised the public to remain calm Labels: Nature |
