A man had a close shave after a tree fell onto his car and one of its branches penetrated the windscreen, narrowingly missing him.

The incident occurred along Block 289C Punggol Place on Feb 20 at about 3.15pm. The man told Shin Min Daily News that he was parking his car at the entrance of the estate's multi-storey carpark after driving back from work. 

"I first heard a loud noise when [the tree] hit the roof of my car, and then two branches pierced through.

"There were also rustling noises around me; my entire car was covered by branches and leaves, and I couldn't see anything," the real estate agent told the Chinese daily.

It took him about 10 minutes to recover from the shock and call the police for help. 

Estimating the two branches that penetrated his car to be about 10cm in diameter, he said: "One branch came in through the windscreen, right beside my steering wheel, and the other came through the window on the right.

"A few more centimetres and I wouldn't be here now". 

The Singapore Civil Defence Force confirmed with AsiaOne that they received a call for assistance that afternoon. 

Upon arrival, they found the man trapped in the driver's seat of the car. Officers used cutting equipment to free him, and no injuries were reported. 

Due to the torrential rains that day, fallen trees were also spotted in other parts of the island. 

ALSO READ: Watch out! Falling tree in Sembawang Park nearly hits 5-year-old girl

claudiatan@asiaone.com

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