Large tree falls on car along PIE, trapping passenger

SINGAPORE – A tree near the exit of Toa Payoh Lorong 2 fell and pinned a car on the Pan Island Expressway towards Changi on Sunday morning.

A passenger was trapped in the green car by the fallen tree and had to be rescued by two men, reported Chinese-language media outlet Shin Min Daily News.

In pictures circulating on Facebook and Telegram, one of the rescuers appeared to have abrasions.

There were no reported injuries, the Singapore Civil Defence Force said.

The yellow flame tree fell at about 6am on the expressway and obstructed traffic across all four lanes towards Changi, Shin Min reported.

Three bus services – 5, 151 and 154 – had to be diverted from their regular routes for more than an hour, according to tweets by bus operator SBS Transit.

The tree was cleared by 8.10am.

This is the second large tree to have toppled in the past three days.

On Friday, a tree in Tiong Bahru fell on the roof of a shophouse at 82 Tiong Poh Road at about 5.15pm. It also crushed the air conditioning unit of Drips Bakery Cafe, which is on the first floor of the shophouse.

A staff member of Ting Heng Seafood Restaurant next to the cafe told Shin Min there was no rain or strong winds when the tree fell.

The 54-year-old, who identified herself only as Ms Xie, said the tree fell without warning and its loud crash frightened the restaurant’s staff and customers.

She said: “We’ve been operating here for close to 20 years. When we opened, the large tree was already there. We estimate that it’s at least 30 years old.”

Ms Xie said about 30 police and SCDF officers arrived at the scene after the tree fell. She suspected a gas leak might have occurred in the restaurant because the tree fell at the back of the shophouse.

Responding to queries, SCDF said it received a call about the incident at around 5.40pm and its firefighters detected the presence of combustible gas on the second floor of the shophouse.

“The source of the gas leak was identified to be from a gas pipeline and the gas supply was shut off,” said SCDF. 

There were no reported injuries, it added.

Customers had to be evacuated from the restaurant until it resumed operations at about 7pm, Ms Xie added.

She said that removal of the tree began on Saturday at about 10am, and she was told that clearing works would continue until Monday.

Other trees nearby also had to be removed for safety reasons, she added.

Three large trees in the area had been cut down by Sunday morning, Shin Min reported.

A staff member at Drips Bakery Cafe, who wanted to be known as Mr Yang, told Shin Min the tree had crushed its kitchen, and an air-conditioning filter in its dining area collapsed as well. Both areas were subsequently cordoned off.

While the kitchen’s closure prevented the cafe from preparing food, it was open for business on Saturday selling coffee and pastries, said Mr Yang, 28.

He said: “Renovations for the kitchen had just been completed in January – who knew that such an accident would happen. As for the losses, we have to wait for the evaluation.”

The Straits Times has contacted the National Parks Board with queries.

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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.