SINGAPORE -Just a week after a malfunctioned lift in Ang Mo Kio resumed operation, it was spotted on Monday (April 4) with its doors jammed half open.

But Ang Mo Kio Town Council has clarified that the glitch was due to plastic studs stuck on the lift door sill, and not a lift fault.

Residents found Lift A at Block 317, Ang Mo Kio Street 31, stuck on the second floor on Monday morning.

Its doors were ajar and could not close for more than eight hours, Chinese evening daily Lianhe Wanbao reported on Tuesday.

One resident told Chinese daily Shin Min Daily News that the same lift had broken down at least three times in the past week.

A spokesman for Ang Mo Kio Town Council said its technician found that the lift doors on the second floor landing could not close because of plastic studs stuck on the door sill.

"These are the rubberised studs that are usually fixed at the bottom of wooden cabinets which may have fallen onto the door sill when the furniture men were shifting the wooden cabinets," the spokesman said.

He added that this caused the door to be jammed and the lift resumed normal operation after the studs were removed.

The same lift was suspended from use last month after it suddenly shot up 17 storeys on March 7, causing a 36-year-old Indonesian maid who was in it to fall and hurt her buttocks.

The lift subsequently stalled, trapping the woman for more than an hour before she was rescued.

In response, the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) suspended the lift from operation and ordered Ang Mo Kio Town Council to appoint an authorised examiner to inspect the lift.

The examiner found that the mishap likely occurred due to brakes that were not functioning well.

His report, which was submitted to the BCA, said the brakes could not hold the lift car in a stationary position, possibly due to the "jammed mechanical parts of the brakes, oily brake drum and worn-off brake liners".

Rectification works were carried out and the lift was certified safe to use before it was put back into operation on March 28 - one week before the latest incident.