He had just finished his meal at a busy coffee shop in a MacPherson industrial building when he heard people shouting out a warning.

“It’s falling, it’s falling!”

He froze, and the next thing he knew, a 10m-long signboard had fallen nearby, pinning a woman in her 50s against a fridge behind her.

Mr Wang Hong Ming, 34, one of the patrons of Food Loft coffee shop, told The New Paper (TNP) in Mandarin: “It all happened so fast and I think she couldn’t react in time.”

He said he was the first to rush to her aid and he quickly lifted off the signboard, which had fallen on her chest.

The incident happened on Wednesday.

“When I got the signboard off her, I didn’t see any blood, but her face turned very red,” said Mr Wang, who works nearby.

“I had no time to feel scared. If you see something like that, what would you do?”

When it fell, the long signboard, which was for four stalls, took down with it part of the false ceiling at the coffee shop at Lorong Batu Bakar, off MacPherson Road, reported Lianhe Wanbao.

When TNP visited the coffee shop yesterday at 4.30pm, the space where the signboard had fallen had been swept clean.

Most parts of the ceiling have also been fixed.

Some debris was spotted in one of the stalls.

A coffee shop worker, believed to be the supervisor, said she had not been present when the signboard fell.

The woman, who declined to be named, said in Mandarin: “The signboard is in the midst of being repaired.”

Sales were also unaffected, she said, with roughly the same number of customers streaming into the coffee shop as on a regular day.

But the stalls close to where the signboard had fallen said their businesses were affected.

The owner of the stall right next to the fallen signboard, who wanted to be known only as Mr Lim, 60, said in Mandarin: “My business was a little affected because people now find it inconvenient to walk to this stall.”

This article was first published on August 12, 2016.
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He had just finished his meal at a busy coffee shop in a MacPherson industrial building when he heard people shouting out a warning.

“It’s falling, it’s falling!”

He froze, and the next thing he knew, a 10m-long signboard had fallen nearby, pinning a woman in her 50s against a fridge behind her.

Mr Wang Hong Ming, 34, one of the patrons of Food Loft coffee shop, told The New Paper (TNP) in Mandarin: “It all happened so fast and I think she couldn’t react in time.”

He said he was the first to rush to her aid and he quickly lifted off the signboard, which had fallen on her chest.

The incident happened on Wednesday.

“When I got the signboard off her, I didn’t see any blood, but her face turned very red,” said Mr Wang, who works nearby.

“I had no time to feel scared. If you see something like that, what would you do?”

When it fell, the long signboard, which was for four stalls, took down with it part of the false ceiling at the coffee shop at Lorong Batu Bakar, off MacPherson Road, reported Lianhe Wanbao.

When TNP visited the coffee shop yesterday at 4.30pm, the space where the signboard had fallen had been swept clean.

Most parts of the ceiling have also been fixed.

Some debris was spotted in one of the stalls.

A coffee shop worker, believed to be the supervisor, said she had not been present when the signboard fell.

The woman, who declined to be named, said in Mandarin: “The signboard is in the midst of being repaired.”

Sales were also unaffected, she said, with roughly the same number of customers streaming into the coffee shop as on a regular day.

But the stalls close to where the signboard had fallen said their businesses were affected.

The owner of the stall right next to the fallen signboard, who wanted to be known only as Mr Lim, 60, said in Mandarin: “My business was a little affected because people now find it inconvenient to walk to this stall.”

This article was first published on August 12, 2016.
Get The New Paper for more stories.

An unexploded aerial bomb found on a barge carrying a consignment of sand from Vietnam is likely to be disposed of by the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) in the week ahead, sources said yesterday.

The war relic, estimated to be 2m long, was discovered on July 18 on the KNB 1, a Singapore vessel involved in land-reclamation work for a new port terminal in Tuas.

Over the last three weeks, sand around the bomb – which got stuck on the barge’s conveyor belt – had to be carefully removed so that experts could access the bomb.

Those involved had earlier suggested hiring a private contractor, as the bomb was found to be safe to be moved on Monday.

However, further checks by The Straits Times found that, given the size of the bomb and its classification as “sensitive ordnance”, the task of removing it fell to the SAF’s Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Explosives (CBRE) Defence Group.

Sources said the CBRE team is now waiting for ideal tidal conditions at Pulau Senang, which is an offshore island used by the SAF for live-firing exercises and the disposal of unexploded ordnance.

The bomb will be taken to the island and detonated.

The KNB 1 barge is currently anchored off Pulau Sudong, at the Sudong Explosive Anchorage, a designated site for the loading or discharging of dangerous goods.

It was moved from the Tuas reclamation site after SAF experts decided that it was safe to do so.

The sand was loaded onto the KNB 1 from another vessel in the area and was to be unloaded onto the reclamation site when the crew discovered the bomb.

An industry expert, who did not want to be named, said there are generally two ways of detonating an unexploded bomb.

One is a “low order” controlled blast, where the shell of the bomb is cut open and the explosives are burnt.

The other way is a “high order” method, where explosives are attached to the bomb to blow it up.

The expert said he did not believe that the bomb had been launched from an airplane before.

If it had, it would be it armed and highly explosive.

He said: “The bomb was transported all the way from Vietnam to Singapore, and likely never used.

“It was probably kept in storage and disposed of into the sea, where it was later dredged up, along with the sand.”

This article was first published on August 12, 2016.
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Higher daily ridership and lower fuel costs on the Downtown Line gave SBS Transit a lift on its earnings in the second quarter.

Net profit came in at $7.2 million for the second quarter, up 19 per cent from the same period a year earlier.

Revenue increased by 5.6 per cent to $269 million.

The company’s results were boosted by its rail business.

Revenue from the rail segment rose by 24.6 per cent to $65.1 million, owing to higher average daily ridership after the commencement of revenue from the service of the Downtown Line 2.

This was offset by lower average fares for the North-East Line and Light Rail Transit due to the fare reduction from Dec 27 last year.

Average daily ridership on the Downtown line surged by 204.8 per cent to 212,000 passenger trips, compared with the same period last year.

Operating profit for the quarter was $9.4 million,up by 11.1 per cent for the same period last year, mainly due to higher revenue, lower fuel costs and lower depreciation.

Some gains were offset by higher staff costs due to the recruitment of more staff for the Downtown Line, it said.

In a statement yesterday, the company said it expected rail revenue to grow from higher ridership, while bus revenue is expected to be maintained.

It added in a separate announcement that with effect from Sept 1, its bus unit will enter into a negotiated contract with the Land Transport Authority (LTA) for the operation of public bus services under the Bus Contracting Model.

Under this model, SBS will receive bus revenue comprising of the service fee for the provision of bus services and revenue from advertising and rental. In addition, LTA will pay SBS a leasing fee for the use of its existing fleet of buses.

The overall gain in profits translated to higher earnings per share of 2.34 cents, up from 1.97 cents.

Net asset value per share was $1.17 as at June 30, up from $1.10 as at Dec 31.

The company declared an interim dividend of 2.35 cents per share up from 1.65 cents last year.

AT A GLANCE

NET PROFIT: $7.2 million (+19 per cent)

REVENUE: $269 million (+5.6 per cent)

INTERIM DIVIDEND PER SHARE: 2.35 cents (+42.4 per cent)

This article was first published on August 12, 2016.
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Pet businesses will be expected to comply with a new code that spells out minimum standards on the care, management and housing of animals.

The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) yesterday announced that the new Code of Animal Welfare (for the Pet Industry) will take effect on Oct 1 and apply to any business that sells pets or goods and services for pets.

This includes pet shops, groomers and even pet trainers.

Businesses will be given till March 31 next year to comply.

Under the code, pet businesses will, for example, need to ensure animal enclosures are clean, well-ventilated and large enough for the animal to move freely.

Pet breeders will need to ensure that their animals are physically fit, healthy and free of diseases prior to mating.

The code also includes best practices which businesses are encouraged to adopt.

The AVA said that although failing to meet the minimum requirements will not be an offence, it can be used to support prosecution or other enforcement actions for animal welfare cases.

Ms Tan Poh Hong, AVA’s CEO, said: “With the code, pet businesses now have an official guideline on their responsibilities to the animals under their charge.”

Dr Jaipal Singh Gill, 33, executive director of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, called the new code “a good starting point”.

“Within a year or so, once the industry has had time to adjust and reach the minimum standards required of them, some of the ‘best practices’ need to become minimum requirements,” he said.

Mr Ng Whye Hoe, 44, managing director and owner of Pet Lovers Centre, said improvements can still be made in practically every area of the pet industry, including hygiene and pet welfare.

“Constant and neverending improvement should be the attitude of the industry,” he said.

Separately, the Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration Committee for Animal Welfare (MSCC) has given its recommendations for a training curriculum for operators and staff of pet-related businesses.

The curriculum it has recommended includes training on animal welfare law in Singapore, as well as training on animal behaviour and needs.

Mr Chua Ming Kok, 43, owner of SmashsingGrooming Academy, said this would be a good move if it is accepted as, in some cases, poor treatment of animals arise from lack of knowledge.

Poodles, for example, are very fragile, hence extra care must be taken to ensure they do not run around or jump off high surfaces.

“It is also important to understand the body language and temperament of the different breeds,” he said.

The AVA said it will study and review MSCC’s recommendations.

This article was first published on August 12, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.