SINGAPORE: About 40 people were evacuated from an HDB block in Clementi West on Monday (Mar 16) after fire broke out in one of the residential units.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to a fire in a unit on the 19th floor of Block 724 Clementi West Street 2 at about 3.20pm.
The fire was extinguished using a water jet.
About 40 people were evacuated from the block. (Photo: Md Taufiq Redwan)
An eyewitness, who wanted to be identified as Christopher, told CNA he saw a “very large fire in the higher level” of the building.
“It engulfed up to the next three floors above,” he said, adding that the wind probably “caused the fire to get bigger”.
Approximately 40 people were evacuated from the block by SCDF and the Singapore Police Force. An occupant of the affected unit was also evacuated and assessed by a paramedic, said SCDF, adding that the person did not want to be taken to hospital.
Those evacuated were later allowed to return to their homes.
SINGAPORE: Sales of new private homes rose in February despite the COVID-19 outbreak.
Developers sold 975 homes – excluding executive condominiums – last month, 57.3 per cent higher than the 620 units sold in the preceding month, data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) showed on Monday (Mar 16).
This was also 114.3 per cent more than the 455 units sold over the same period last year, making it the second-highest February performance for new private homes sales in eight years, said Chrisitine Sun, head of research and consultancy at OrangeTee and Tie.
Including executive condominiums, 1314 units were sold, a 187.5 per cent increase over the 457 units sold in February 2019 and a 105.3 per cent increase on the 640 homes in January.
February’s sales was led mainly by the sales of 380 units at The M condominium, followed by 324 units at Parc Canberra executive condominium
Mr Ismail added that the private new home sales segment continues to be “in strong demand” despite the impact of COVID-19 on Singapore’s economy. “This is mainly due to attractive pricing adopted by developers,” he said.
As of Sunday evening, Singapore had a total of 226 COVID-19 infections.
Ms Sun also agreed that sales had performed better than expected given the COVID-19 outbreak and “seasonal lull” during the Chinese New Year period.
“The surge in sales may be attributed to more investors diversifying their portfolios to property investments after the recent stock market rout,” Ms Sun added.
Ms Sun also noted that the number of Singaporean purchases grew strongly last month with 812 non-landed homes excluding executive condominiums bought by Singaporeans.
This was up from the 413 units transacted the month before and 351 units in December 2019.
Singapore expanded its border controls on Sunday (Mar 15), with stay-home notices a key tool used to prevent the spread of COVID-19 here. But what does it entail, exactly?
Passengers arriving in Singapore at Harbourfront Centre Ferry Terminal on Mar 5, 2020. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
(Updated: )
Bookmark
SINGAPORE: Singapore on Sunday (Mar 15) expanded its border restriction measures even as the COVID-19 outbreak continues to worsen around the world, with stay-home notices (SHN) a key tool wielded by authorities to contain the coronavirus.
The COVID-19 multi-ministry task force said on Sunday that from Mar 16, 11.59pm, all travellers entering Singapore with recent travel to Southeast Asian countries, Japan, Switzerland or the United Kingdom within the last 14 days will be issued a 14-day stay-home notice.
The Southeast Asian countries include Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia, though National Development Minister Lawrence Wong said this will not apply to Singaporeans and Malaysians using sea and land crossings with Malaysia.
SHNs have been imposed on those with travel history to mainland China (excluding Hubei province), France, Germany, Italy, Iran, South Korea and Spain previously.
Since then, CNA has received many queries from the public on the new measures. We put together these answers from the Ministry of Health to answer your frequently asked questions:
Question: Who will be issued a stay-home notice?
Answer: Singapore residents and long-term pass holders will be issued a 14-day stay-home notice if they have travelled to the following places in the past 14-days –
Mainland China (except Hubei province, travellers from there will be quarantined)
France
Germany
Italy
Iran
South Korea
Spain
Japan (from Mar 16, 11.59pm)
Switzerland (from Mar 16, 11.59pm)
United Kingdom (from Mar 16, 11.59pm)
ASEAN countries (from Mar 16, 11.59pm)
From Mar 16, 11.59pm, short-term visitors with travel history in the last 14 days to ASEAN countries, Japan, Switzerland and the United Kingdom will also be issued a stay-home notice.
They will have to provide proof of the place they will stay in to serve this notice, such as hotels or a family member’s home.
Q: What will I need to do to comply with the stay-home notice?
A: A person issued with a stay-home notice is to stay home at all times during the 14-day period. Authorities will check on them using text messages, GPS location via their mobile phones, random phone calls and house visits.
Those who receive a phone call are also to take photos of their surroundings to verify their whereabouts, according to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA).
You will also need to monitor your health closely, with temperature checks twice daily and for respiratory symptoms like cough and breathlessness.
Q: I’m living with someone issued with a SHN. What must I do?
A: You can still live in the same room with the person issued a stay-home notice, but you’re encouraged to reduce interaction and minimise contact with them.
For example, avoid sharing a bed, limit the time spent together at common areas within the apartment, have separate meal times and ensure the room is properly ventilated.
You are also to avoid sharing the same toilet, if possible. If it is not practical, avoid using the toilet at the same time and clean toilet surfaces more frequently. Do not share towels, but sharing of toilet paper is safe so long as it’s not stained, soiled or wet.
Maintain good personal hygiene at all times.
Q: Will I be able to leave my home to go on food/grocery runs if I’m on SHN?
A: No. You may turn to home delivery services, or enlist the help of others for your daily necessities.
For those delivering food or supplies, there is no need for masks or other protective equipment. These can be delivered in ways that minimise contact with the person under the SHN.
Q: Must I see a doctor to be certified well after my 14-day SHN is served?
A: No. It is not useful to send the person who does not have symptoms to the doctor or a hospital for testing. They will not be offered diagnostic testing and will be asked to return home.
Q: What if I don’t comply with the stay-home notice?
A: You may face the following penalties if you fail to comply with the notice:
Be prosecuted under Section 21A of the Infectious Diseases Act
For a Singapore permanent resident, Long-Term Visit Pass holder, Dependant’s Pass holder, or Student’s Pass holder, the re-entry permit or pass may be revoked
For a foreign employee issued a work pass, this pass may be revoked
If the person is a full-time student, he or she may be subjected to disciplinary action – including suspension or dismissal. Foreign students may see the cancellation of their Student’s Pass or Dependant’s Pass.
The authorities have not shied from enforcing the penalties so far. A 45-year-old man lost his PR status after breaching his stay-home notice and will be barred from re-entering Singapore, according to a February report.
Land Transport Authority (LTA) officers have been out on the streets seizing non-compliant e-scooters and warning errant riders since the footpath ban kicked in on Jan 1.
Recently, several Active Mobility Enforcement Officers (AMEOs) were accused of chasing down an e-scooter rider, tackling and pushing him into a drain in Bukit Batok while on their enforcement rounds.
He was only given “a bottle of Dettol” for his bleeding wounds from the fall, the rider’s friend, Nicole, wrote on Facebook on March 11, the day of the incident.
She added that her friend was riding a registered e-scooter that complied with LTA’s regulations. Her post has since been set to friends-only.
Singapore is considering tapping its past reserves as it puts together a second relief package amid the deadly coronavirus outbreak. If it makes the move, it will be the second time the government has drawn on the reserves, with the first instance occurring in 2009, when it used them to cushion the effects of the global financial crisis.
Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat said Wednesday that the enhanced package would provide support for small and medium-sized enterprises as well as target self-employed workers.
The announcement came just weeks after Heng, who is also Singapore’s deputy prime minister, announced an initial $6.4 billion financial package to help Singapore weather the coronavirus storm.
That package comprised $800 million for health care, $4 billion for businesses and workers, and another $1.6 billion going to households to tide them over.
The second economic stimulus would come just as a general election is imminent, following the release of freshly drawn electoral zones on Friday.
Being a migrant worker in Singapore is a thankless job, to say the least. But some Singaporeans are stepping up to show just how much they care.
Social enterprise Itsrainingraincoats announced on Facebook on Mar 14 that Singaporeans donated a whopping 33 cartons of baby essentials in a donation drive organised for the benefit of the pregnant wife of Case 42, a Bangladeshi worker.
The organisation wrote: “The quantity we collected was way beyond our wildest imagination and we are truly overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and generosity that we have witnessed.”
The sheer amount of items donated required a team of 15 to sort and pack, they added.
Friday the 13th didn’t turn out to be such an unlucky day for a family last week, when a kind stranger apparently paid for their entire meal at popular Bukit Timah eating spot, Al-Azhar.
Last Friday night (March 13), Facebook user Nannie Asniar recounted how she and her daughters dropped by the restaurant for dinner. Being “famished”, the mother had ordered some food first while her husband remained occupied looking for a parking spot. That was when Nannie first noticed that someone was paying attention to her children.
“While eating, I saw a Chinese lady seating alone next to our table smiling was while looking at the girls eat, it was a normal sight for me thus I didn’t think of anything [suspicious],” she wrote.
When the fellow lady finished her meal and got up, and Nannie noticed that the stranger had tried to peek at their table number, which didn’t feel too odd. But it was when her husband arrived at the table that they realised that their meal — a $15.90 dinner consisting of prata, briyani and teh tarik — had already been paid for.
Upset that his ex-girlfriend had found a new boyfriend, he uploaded obscene photos and videos of her to a porn site and forum.
He then took satisfaction from his “fans”, who subscribed to and commented on the material.
Last Wednesday, the 21-year-old, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the victim, was convicted after pleading guilty to four charges for distributing the obscene material.
Another eight similar charges were taken into consideration.
He is currently serving his National Service after graduating from a polytechnic, and has been offered a place at a university abroad.
The court heard that the accused and victim met in 2008, when they were in Primary 4. They entered into a romantic relationship in 2011 when they were in Secondary 1, but the relationship ended when they were both in Secondary 4.
The youth said it was his poor treatment of the victim that led to their break-up, but he had tried and failed numerous times to reconcile with her, becoming more disgruntled after each unsuccessful attempt.
SINGAPORE: Chilli crab, rojak and laksa – these quintessential Singaporean dishes usually excite foodies around the world.
But for the past few weeks, even the smell of freshly made kopi can’t draw them into establishments run by Singaporeans overseas.
As the coronavirus spreads globally, Singaporean-owned businesses in Europe, North America and closer to home in the region, have had to bear the economic fallout as customers stay home and avoid large-scale social gatherings.
In the San Francisco Bay area, Shiok Kitchen has seen sales plunge by 70 per cent since the start of the week, said its owner Dennis Lim.
The 52-year-old, who emigrated to the US 20 years ago, said he has cut his six waitstaff’s hours by half. If the situation does not improve soon, Mr Lim said he would have to consider letting some go. Labour cost is a big drag on his bottomline, he said.
He has already had to make the difficult decision to let go of one of his five cooks. He is hanging on to the rest, Otherwise, he will not be “able to reopen when thing hopefully get better”, Mr Lim said.
On the other side of the continent in New York City, pop-up outfit Lion City Coffee, which offers kaya toast and Singapore-style coffee, might have to make adjustments as events such as the upcoming spring food markets like the Queens night market in April, could be cancelled.
The Lion City Coffee pop-up stall in New York City. (Photo: Facebook/Lion City Coffee).
“There aren’t many options other than to temporarily halt operations for cancelled events,” the mobile stall’s co-founder Chuin Tham, 36, said. “We plan to monitor situations closely and proceed with caution and sensitivity.”
But for now, none of his bookings have been cancelled.
Up in Toronto, Gregory Woon, 44, and Eleanor Sim, 45, would usually see an uptick in their restaurant business after a slow start to the year. But “pickup has been pretty much non-existent,” said Mdm Sim.
The exterior of Lion City Restaurant in Toronto, Canada. (Photo: Eleanor Sim).
The couple, who moved from Singapore to the city in 2015, have cut their nine employees – five full-timers and four part-timers – schedules by 20 per cent.
Staff are either taking an extra day off each week, or working fewer hours. They have been “gracious and understanding”, pro-actively offering to cut back their hours or take a pay cut, said Mdm Sim.
As delivery orders are expected to increase, the restaurant is now working with two more food delivery companies – Uber Eats and Foodora. This is on top of the two other food delivery providers – SkipTheDishes and Ritual – they currently work with.
“We still count ourselves lucky that as a business we are small (and) agile (enough) to weather what is to come,” Mdm Sim said.
Lion City Restaurant’s owners Gregory Woon and Eleanor Sim, who moved to Toronto in 2015. (Photo: Tessa Tham).
In London, Singapore Garden has seen a drop in sales by 30 per cent in the last six weeks, said head chef Toh Kok Sum, who also runs the restaurant. He said the outlook looks bleak.
“It is going to continue dropping as the situation is getting worse,” Mr Toh said. “I asked our landlord to reduce rent, but he said no.”
The restaurant, a mainstay in the city’s dining scene for 35 years, might have to shut down if the impact of the virus leads to prolonged losses, he said.
The UK government’s slew of measures to support small ventures like his will likely help the restaurant survive for the time being, he said.
The Singapore Garden restaurant in London. (Photo: Facebook/Singapore Garden)
On Wednesday (Mar 11), the British chancellor announced a £30 billion (US$36.8 billion) package to deal with the coronavirus. Part of it will go to assisting local businesses, which includes a loan scheme and extending sick pay for employees who are off work due to the coronavirus.
In recent weeks, the number of people tested positive for the coronavirus has surged in countries such as the UK and the US, where close to 1,400 and more than 3,700 cases have been confirmed respectively, while about 340 in Canada have been infected. On Wednesday, the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic.
But even weeks before the coronavirus became widespread across Europe and North America, reports of racial discrimination against Asian-owned businesses made headlines as the virus, which emerged from mainland China, stoked xenophobic sentiments.
Sales at stores and eateries took a significant dive as irrational fears and unfounded rumours about the local Chinese community kept customers away.
None of the Singaporean owned businesses CNA spoke has had to face any racist encounters so far. But they are troubled to hear what is happening.
“Fortunately (we have not been targets as) we’re a Singaporean restaurant, rather than a Chinese restaurant,” said Lion City Restaurant’s Mdm Sim. To improve slumping sales, the Chinese Cuisine & Hospitality Association of Canada spearheaded a two-week long food festival called Asialicious to boost visits to Chinese-Canadian restaurants.
The campaign received strong support from members of parliament and the community, she said.
“It is with sadness and disappointment to see that acts against the Asian community are prevalent in New York, a city that has long embraced and thrived on diversity,” Mr Tham of Lion City Coffee said.
While businesses in the West continue to grapple with the rapidly increasing number of coronavirus cases, businesses in Asia have been similarly affected.
Even before the number of COVID-19 cases in South Korea exploded in mid-February, bookings at Morning Dew guesthouse in Busan had fallen by 80 per cent, Glynsen Wong, 36, its owner said.
By the end of the month, Mr Wong decided to stop operations, which can house up to 15 people, temporarily, knowing that tourist numbers would plummet.
The Morning Dew guesthouse in Busan. (Photo:Facebook/Morning Dew).
“You don’t see anyone with suitcases running around now,” he said. Luckily, he and his wife are the only full-time employees, so there was no need for layoffs.
As the number of cases grew exponentially in the country, he moved his family back to Singapore.
He plans to keep the guesthouse closed until the lifting of travel restrictions, he said.
Given it is now the low-season, Mr Wong said he is not too concerned about his monetary losses.
People who previously bought their flight tickets “will (probably) still travel, just in the future”.
“At some point of time there will be an explosion of tourists due to pent-up demand,” he said.
A renovation contractor died after falling from a ladder.
Mr Tan Ah Lee, 64, a Malaysian, was patching the ceiling of a home in Bedok on March 6 when he fell.
In a statement to The New Paper last Thursday, a spokesman for the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said Mr Tan was engaged to patch the ceiling of a home but was later found lying on the ladder on the floor.
It is believed the A-frame ladder toppled while he was working on the ceiling.
The contractor was taken to hospital where he later died.
MOM is investigating the accident.
According to business records, Mr Tan is the sole proprietor of Eng Hup Heng Renovation Contractor, a company registered here since 1999.
This is the eighth reported workplace death here this year.
