Upcycled fire hoses become animal hammocks

SINGAPORE – Mr Justin Ong was at Tennoji Zoo in Osaka, Japan, in January 2026, when he saw monkeys swinging around on old fire hoses in their enclosure.

Inspiration struck him, and when the staff officer of future operations at Changi Airport Group’s (CAG) Airport Emergency Service returned to Singapore, he asked his colleagues if they would like to try upcycling fire hoses as a team bonding activity.

They agreed, and that was how the lions and monkeys at the Mandai Wildlife Reserve ended up with four hammocks made from repurposed fire hoses to lounge and rest comfortably on.

Mr Nazmi Mohamed Nazali, a fire sergeant at CAG’s Airport Emergency Service, helped to gather more than 20 unserviceable fire hoses from the firefighting units at Changi and Seletar airports as well as military airbases.

These fire hoses had either exceeded their 15- to 20-year lifespan or sustained damage beyond repair.

Mr Ong then contacted Mandai Wildlife Group to explore the possibility of converting the hoses into structures that the animals could use. The group confirmed that this was feasible, and also offered to host a hammock-building workshop for the staff.

For four hours in February, around 20 volunteers from the Airport Emergency Service worked together at the workshop to build the hammocks from scratch using the collected fire hoses, together with steel frames.

Describing the cutting process as “quite difficult”, Ms Yvonne Sin, assistant manager of administration and finance at the Airport Emergency Service, explained that it was challenging to handle the larger garden shears needed to cut the thick fire hoses into long strips.

The volunteers then had to weave the strips into a crisscross pattern – similar to that of ketupat wrapping – before bolting them to the steel frames using drills.

The hammocks needed to be sturdy enough to support the animals’ weight, but Mr Halil Iskander wanted to go the extra mile by making his visually appealing as well.

The senior fire warrant officer in fire prevention at the Airport Emergency Service said he colour-coded the hammock he was working on so that the monkeys could have a special hammock with zigzagging strips in different shades of red.

“I was a bit extra, so I could tell my kids that this particular (hammock) is the one I made,” he added.

Mr Nazmi, the fire sergeant, also said he was looking forward to showing his two-year-old son the hammock he made, since his son visits the zoo every month.

Mr Grant Kother, curator of behavioural research and management for veterinary healthcare and scientific programmes at Mandai Wildlife Group, told The Straits Times that the Asian lions are using their two hammocks as additional resting places. The other two smaller hammocks support enrichment activities for the primates, he said, adding that they provide opportunities for climbing, swinging, and staying both physically and mentally stimulated.

Noting that behavioural enrichment is one of the ways the group cares for its animals, Mr Kother said this involves carefully designed activities and environments that “encourage natural behaviours” and support the animals’ well-being.

“Fire hoses are durable enough to withstand the claws, teeth and talons of our animals, making them a practical and suitable material for such uses,” he added.

This is not the first time that CAG and Mandai Wildlife Group have repurposed retired fire hoses.

CAG had previously recycled decommissioned fire hoses into coin pouches for a company event, and into Christmas trees for the office.

Mr Halil said: “We use these hoses to save lives, and once they’ve served their purpose – we don’t just retire them, but we give them meaningful second lives.”

Mr Kother said hoses donated by the Singapore Civil Defence Force have been upcycled into puzzle feeders – interactive toys that require animals to solve puzzles to access food – as well as climbing platforms and resting structures for a variety of species across Mandai’s wildlife parks.

When asked about plans to repurpose more fire hoses, CAG said it is “always on the lookout” for ways to help the community and do its part for the environment.

“Should a suitable opportunity arise or if other partners want to work with us on a meaningful cause, we remain ready to explore this,” it said.