SINGAPORE - Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to the fire station, apparently.

A video of a rooster crowing at an intersection in the wee hours went viral on Friday (Jan 5), with a subsequent video showing a Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) officer rescuing the fowl from the middle of the road.

Mr Amaan Ullah Khan, a 23-year-old student from India, told The Straits Times on Saturday that he was cycling near the Central Fire Station in Hill Street at around 4.30am on Friday when he saw the rooster.

"I was cycling and suddenly I saw a rooster on the road. I was amused because I've been studying in Singapore for two years and I've never seen that," he said.

Mr Amaan, who is from New Delhi, said there were already two SCDF officers there watching the rooster and filming it, he said.

The rooster was in the middle of the road for 15 to 20 minutes, crowing loudly, he said. Cars manoeuvred around it to avoid it.

One of the SCDF officers went over and moved the rooster to safety when the lights were red in his favour, said Mr Amaan, who is studying travel and tourism at SDH Institute, a private school.

"We have roosters in New Delhi," he said. "People keep them as pets, it's very common in India. But it was my first time seeing a live rooster in Singapore, and on the road, so I took videos of it."

In the videos, the rooster can be seen crowing, oblivious to the traffic that goes by and honks at it occasionally.

An officer in blue is seen trying to grab the rooster, which flutters at him repeatedly.

Eventually, he grasps the bird with both hands and removes it from the road.

ST understands that the bird was moved to safety.

Animal Concerns Research & Education Society (Acres) deputy chief executive Kalai Vanan told ST that the wildlife group did not receive a call over this incident.

"The rooster is most likely not a junglefowl," he said. "Considering the location, it probably came from nearby wooded areas."

He added that Acres gave its heartfelt appreciation to the man who helped move the animal from the road to safer grounds.

"We have had a few cases of roosters being victims of roadkill, including at least two in central Singapore," he said. "One luckily sustained little injuries and limped back into the forested area."