Sinkhole appears at Tanjong Katong Road South, vehicle partially submerged in water
Sinkhole appears at Tanjong Katong Road South, vehicle partially submerged in water
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CNA
an hour ago
- CNA
Tanjong Katong sinkhole: PUB to call for safety time-out to review sewer works similar to incident site
SINGAPORE: The site where a sinkhole appeared in Tanjong Katong on Saturday (Jul 26) is adjacent to an active PUB worksite involving the construction of a 16m-deep shaft connecting three existing sewer lines, the national water agency said on Sunday. It added that the shaft has been backfilled to stabilise the surrounding ground, and as a precautionary measure, PUB will call for a time-out to review and ensure the safety of similar sewer construction works across Singapore. Giving an update on Saturday's incident late on Sunday, PUB said that the sinkhole has been filled with liquefied stabilised soil to further stabilise the area, after which road reinstatement works will commence. PUB also provided a sequence of the events on Saturday. It said that at around 5.50pm, a caisson ring in the shaft under construction at the PUB worksite "was observed to have failed". "It is still not clear what contributed to this failure." At around the same time, a sinkhole formed on the adjacent Tanjong Katong Road South, causing a vehicle to fall in. The female driver was rescued by workers and taken conscious to Raffles Hospital. Tanjong Katong Road South between Mountbatten Road and East Coast Parkway (ECP) will be closed until further notice for repairs, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said on Sunday. Bus services 36 and 48 have been diverted. The sinkhole is about 2m to 3m deep and as wide as two lanes of the road. PUB began pumping water out of the sinkhole from 9:45am, and this was completed by 1:20pm. The vehicle that had fallen into the sinkhole was retrieved at 2:00pm. PUB said it is working closely with Building and Construction Authority (BCA) and Land Transport Authority (LTA) closely to oversee the repair efforts and to investigate what contributed to the sinkhole incident. It added that it is still analysing the results of a ground-penetrating radar (GPR) scan that was carried out to assess the surrounding area. "Engineers from BCA have checked and affirmed that nearby structures, including One Amber condominium and the landed homes across the road, are not affected by the incident," said PUB.
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
Belgian Grand Prix starts after long rain delay
Find out what's new on ST website and app. Formula One F1 - Belgian Grand Prix - Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium - July 27, 2025 Ferrari mechanics with Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton car in the pit lane after the start of the race was delayed due to weather REUTERS/Yves Herman/Pool SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium - The Belgian Formula One Grand Prix started after four laps behind the safety car on Sunday following a delay of nearly an hour and a half due to rain and poor visibility at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit. After an initial formation lap behind the safety car, the cars were brought into the pit lane and the starting procedure halted. "I can't see a lot behind the safety car so I can't imagine what it's like for everyone else," McLaren's pole-sitter Lando Norris, who is nine points behind championship-leading teammate Oscar Piastri, said over the team radio. After the long wait, the FIA cleared the race to start once standing water had been removed. The safety car then led the field around to assess visibility before a rolling start was decided. The rain-affected 2021 Belgian Grand Prix remains the shortest race in Formula One history with only three laps completed behind the safety car and half points awarded. "We should just run," said Red Bull's reigning champion Max Verstappen over the radio when the red flags were shown. "They're way too cautious." Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Tanjong Katong Road sinkhole did not happen overnight: Experts Singapore Workers used nylon rope to rescue driver of car that fell into Tanjong Katong Road sinkhole Singapore Car that fell into Tanjong Katong Road South sinkhole removed; road remains closed for repairs Asia Singapore-only car washes will get business licences revoked, says Johor govt Sport Arsenal beat Newcastle in five-goal thriller to bring Singapore Festival of Football to a close Singapore Benchmark barrier: Six of her homeschooled kids had to retake the PSLE Singapore Younger generation must inherit and strengthen Singapore's multiculturalism: David Neo Asia S'porean trainee doctor in Melbourne arrested for allegedly filming colleagues in toilets since 2021 Nico Rosberg, the retired 2016 world champion, told Sky Sports television that there was little drivers could do other than wait. "The conditions out there are horrendous and the race start will be extremely difficult," said the German. "You can't see anything. You have long straights but must stay flat, but you're blind, looking left or right at the wall to find a brake marker board." REUTERS
Straits Times
4 hours ago
- Straits Times
Tanjong Katong Road sinkhole did not happen overnight: Experts
Workers involve in recovery work at the site of the sinkhole at 5.30am along Tajong Katong Road South on July 27. SINGAPORE - The large sinkhole in Tanjong Katong Road South seemed to appear suddenly on the evening of July 26, swallowing a car and its unsuspecting driver as two lanes of the road collapsed into a large pit. But it was unlikely that the erosion of the soil beneath the road happened overnight, instead the collapse could have been the result of changes under the ground that happened much earlier, experts told The Straits Times. 'Sinkholes cannot form suddenly. They need time for the surrounding soil to wash away, causing the cavity to get larger and larger,' said Associate Professor Wu Wei, a geotechnical engineering expert at the Nanyang Technological University. Prof Wu said the rate of ground settlement accelerates before it collapses. Before that happens, cracks might appear on the road surface before it caves in, but these might not always be identifiable to the naked eye, he added. Mr David Ng, a professional engineer who is also the chairman of the civil and structural technical committee at the Institution of Engineers Singapore, said in some cases, it may be possible to spot the road being uneven, see crack lines on the road surfaces or water bubbling from the road surface. Referring to the images of the road before it collapsed, Mr Ng said the freshly laid tarmac may be signs that repairs might have been made recently to fix surface cracks or uneven ground because of soil settlement, although it may also because of other unrelated works. While Mr Ng said it was too early to know for sure what caused the collapse, he said the erosion could have been caused by a leaking old pipe underground or soil movement triggered by excavation works happening next to the road. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Car that fell into Tanjong Katong Road South sinkhole removed; road remains closed for repairs Singapore Workers used nylon rope to rescue driver of car that fell into Tanjong Katong Road sinkhole Asia Singapore-only car washes will get business licences revoked, says Johor govt Singapore Benchmark barrier: Six of her homeschooled kids had to retake the PSLE Sport Arsenal's new signing Viktor Gyokeres unveiled at National Stadium ahead of Newcastle game Singapore For Singapore to do well, PAP govt has to continue to hold its own: SM Lee Life Vet Talk: Pet owners and vets need to work together to prevent infectious zoonotic diseases Asia S'porean trainee doctor in Melbourne arrested for allegedly filming colleagues in toilets since 2021 In the case of leaking pipes, if it happens to be prolonged, it would create a void 'large enough for the surface above to cave in', he said. Meanwhile, excavation works can wash away materials supporting water pipes underground, he added. Left suspended without support underground, the water pipe may burst, leading to water gushing out and flushing away the materials under the surface, causing the road to cave. 'This is happening underground, so we may not be aware of it,' said Mr Ng, who is also the executive director of One Smart, an engineering company that works on geotechnical and infrastructure works, including sewerage projects with PUB. The sinkhole was located beside a worksite by national water agency PUB, where work was underway on a sewerage project. Residents had earlier told reporters that there was a burst water pipe at the same area the night before the sinkhole appeared. But Mr Ng pointed out that in sewerage projects, precautions against cave-ins are taken from the design phase of the project in order to minimise disturbance to the surroundings, ground movements and changes in ground pressure. Instruments like settlement markers, which are nails driven into the ground or concrete blocks in the vicinity of the works, are also used to monitor ground movements, he said. Prof Wu said more frequent use of ground penetration radar could possibly have detected the cavity below the road before it collapsed. Such equipment is typically used by engineers to examine the ground condition below the surface, including location of cabling and other infrastructure, he said. But Prof Wu also pointed out that there are limitations to such technology, including that they can only 'look' 3m to 5m under the surface, and is less accurate when water is present. He pointed out that key to preventing incidents like this is taking more frequent ground measurements and closer monitoring efforts. 'In this case, someone observed a burst water pipe one day before. If monitoring is strengthened, at least early warning can be given,' he said. This is not the first time a road has collapsed here. In November 2022, a PUB project caused a slip road leading from Holland Road and Commonwealth Road into Farrer Road to be closed for a week because tunnelling works caused a cave-in. There were no injuries reported. In the latest incident, the car driver, a woman, was rescued by workers and sent to the hospital by the Singapore Civil Defence Force.
