SINGAPORE — A Malaysian motorcyclist and his pillion rider were injured after two canopies fell onto the motorcycle and car lanes at Tuas Checkpoint’s arrival zone at about 5.35am on Wednesday (Aug 3).
The heavy thunderstorm and very strong winds caused the canopies to collapse, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said in a statement. No drivers in the checkpoint’s car zone were hurt.
The two injured, who were not identified, were taken to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital in Jurong East. Ms Casey Chang, the hospital’s group director of communications and service quality, told TODAY that the duo was discharged later in the day.
Following the incident, arriving cars and motorcycles were diverted to other lanes at the checkpoint — which serves the Second Link — for immigration clearance. Some motorists were rerouted to the Woodlands Checkpoint. The massive congestion that followed frustrated motorists, and many took to social media to post photos and details of the situation.
A Malaysian, who works as a cook in Singapore and wanted to be known only as Mr Huang, said that he was stuck in a “very bad” traffic gridlock that lasted about 45 minutes.
The 41-year-old, who starts work at 7am, said that the wait to clear the checkpoint would typically be about 30 minutes otherwise, and the traffic snarl caused him to be half an hour late for work.
Facebook user Yanak Kwee said that cars were forced to “U-turn” at the checkpoint, while fellow user Angeline Ong called it a “heavy jam”.
Pictures posted on Facebook by the ICA showed checkpoint officers redirecting long lines of motorcycles.
Writing in Chinese, another motorist with the Facebook username Karen Lee said that it was the first time she encountered a closure of a car lane in the nearly seven years that she has used the Second Link.
However, she added that the checkpoint officers reacted quickly, opening up the car lanes meant for vehicles leaving Singapore to inbound traffic.
A spokesperson for the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) told TODAY that it directed the ICA to immediately cordon off the affected area and remove the collapsed canopies after it was informed of the incident.
ICA’s appointed professional engineer also “ascertained that the structural integrity of the main building was not affected by the incident”.
After the fallen canopies were cleared, the Tuas Checkpoint resumed normal operations at 1.45pm.
Both agencies are now working together to investigate the matter.
The Tuas Checkpoint, which cost S$485 million to build, opened in 1998.
News and photo from Today Online
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