Car that fell into Tanjong Katong Road South sinkhole removed; road remains closed for repairs

[SINGAPORE] The black car that fell into a sinkhole along Tanjong Katong Road South was hoisted out with a crane on Sunday afternoon (Jul 27), as work continues to repair the road and reopen it to traffic.

That stretch of Tanjong Katong Road South between Mountbatten Road and East Coast Parkway remains closed until further notice, said the Land Transport Authority (LTA), one day after a sinkhole caused two lanes of the road to collapse.

The road closure will also mean bus services 36 and 48 will be diverted and skip bus stops along Marine Parade, Amber, Mountbatten and Tanjong Katong roads, the LTA said in a Facebook post on Jul 27.

“Motorists and commuters are advised to plan ahead for their journeys, and to consider leaving their homes earlier as there may be traffic delays of around 15 to 20 minutes on average during the morning peak tomorrow,” said LTA in its post.

The authority did not say when repair works will be completed and the road reopened.

The sinkhole had formed at around 5.50pm on Jul 26 beside a construction site where sewer-laying works were being carried out, said national water agency PUB. The collapse caused a car to fall in, and its driver, a woman, was rescued by workers at the site.

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After she was taken to safety, videos of the sinkhole showed that it rapidly filled with water.

Works at the PUB construction site involved building a 16m deep shaft to connect three existing sewer lines. PUB said a concrete structure known as a “caisson ring” in the shaft under construction had failed around the same time that the sinkhole had formed.

“It is still not clear what contributed to this failure,” said PUB.

In its post, PUB added that it was working closely with the LTA and the Building and Construction Authority to oversee repair works and investigate what happened.

Residents had earlier told reporters that there was a burst water pipe in the area the night before the sinkhole appeared.

PUB said the sinkhole incident damaged two water mains, and caused water supply to be disrupted for about 4.5 hours. Water supply was fully restored by 2.30am on Jul 27.

Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC MP Goh Pei Ming visited the site on Jul 27 and told reporters later that PUB has assessed the ground to be stable.

Work is now underway to fill the sinkhole before detailed scans can be done to ensure there are no further cavities, he said in a Facebook post.

“I understand the concerns and urgency many feel about the road reopening. Please be assured that a timeline for reinstatement will be shared once the scans indicate an all-clear. This approach is necessary to ensure the safety of all road users,” said Goh.

The fallen car was hoisted out with a crane after 2.05pm on Jul 27. The black Mazda had a heavily dented front end and a smashed windscreen, and was covered in scratches.

The entire lifting operation took about 10 minutes.

On Jul 27, Mountbatten MP Gho Sze Kee, who also visited the site in the morning, said the driver is in hospital for observation and that she has been experiencing muscular pain.

Construction site foreman Pitchai Udaiyappan Subbiah, who pulled the driver out of the hole together with his colleagues, told reporters they had acted on instinct to save her.

“Someone had fallen in. We were just determined to save her as fast as possible. That was the goal,” said the 46-year-old Subbiah in Tamil.

Some residents told ST that extensive road and excavation works have been taking place in the area, and were worried about whether this affected ground integrity.

“I hope it’s a one-off incident and the authorities will investigate and make sure it doesn’t happen again,” said Tommy Lim, 47, a sales manager. THE STRAITS TIMES