A 37-year-old mother of four watched in horror as a bag of rubbish \u2014 filled with used party ware and glass bottles \u2014 fell in front of three of her children and two nieces on Saturday (April 4) night.<\/p>\n
The incident purportedly happened at about 11.30pm at Block 656 Choa Chu Kang Crescent.<\/p>\n
Speaking to AsiaOne on Sunday, the woman, who only wished to be known only as Wani, said her family was visiting her brother who lives there.<\/p>\n
“It happened when they were walking out from the void deck,” she added.<\/p>\n
“When they came out, the bag of rubbish fell in front of them, between my daughter and niece.<\/p>\n
“There were glass bottles in it and glass shards were everywhere. Can you imagine what would have happened if my daughter took another step forward? It would have landed on her.”<\/p>\n
When asked how the children reacted, a still distressed Wani said that they were traumatised.<\/p>\n
“My children were scared and my nieces were traumatised. They were just five kids walking in a HDB estate,” she said.<\/p>\n
Pictures of the aftermath shared with AsiaOne show used plastic plates, food waste and wrappers, and a four-bottle carrier for a brand of tonic water which typically comes in 4 x 200ml bottle packaging.<\/p>\n
The label on the carrier reads: “Crafted for gin, vodka or vermouth, or enjoy on its own.”<\/p>\n
Broken glass shards could also be seen strewn across the ground.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Wani pointed out that a stack of kitchens faced the area where the bag of rubbish fell, adding that the central refuse chute was just next to the stack.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her family called for police assistance and the case was referred to the National Environment Agency (NEA) after attending officers checked that they were not injured.<\/p>\n
Wani\u2019s family has since lodged a report through the One Service app.\u00a0<\/p>\n
NEA pilot to combat high-rise littering<\/h2>\n
In 2025, NEA conducted about 2,200 camera deployments and issued 350 enforcement notices related to high-rise littering.<\/p>\n
Since October 2025, it has roped in 19 town councils through a pilot to deploy high-rise littering cameras.<\/p>\n
Under the six-month pilot, the town councils are each provided with two surveillance cameras for faster and more targeted intervention on such cases.<\/p>\n
The pilot has seen a catch rate of 30 per cent, more than the 21 per cent recorded by surveillance cameras for such cases deployed by NEA.<\/p>\n
High-rise littering is a serious offence in Singapore.<\/p>\n
Culprits face fines of up to $2,000 for their first conviction, $4,000 for their second one, and $10,000 for third and subsequent convictions.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They could also be made to undergo a Corrective Work Order, cleaning public areas for up to 12 hours.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In 2023, NEA introduced the statutory presumption provision on littering from flats, placing a greater onus on flat owners and tenants to prevent such acts.<\/p>\n
It also ensures that investigations and effective enforcement are not inhibited by uncooperative behaviour.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In cases where a unit has been proven to be a source of littering, the flat owner or tenant will be taken to court if they cannot prove, within a given period of time, that they are not the offender.\u00a0<\/p>\n
[[nid:726106]]<\/p>\n