SINGAPORE - As Singaporeans queued in the hot sun for hours on Wednesday awaiting their turn to pay their last respects to Mr Lee Kuan Yew in Parliament House, acts of kindness sprouted up around them.

From iced drinks to flowers, eateries and businesses located along the queue - which stretched from City Hall MRT to as far as Chinatown - spontaneously handed out free items to quench their thirst.

At Fullerton Hotel by the Singapore River, staff members set up iced water dispensers with plastic cups at an outdoor dining area from about 11am.

The queue was later redirected by marshals away from the area in the early afternoon.

Similarly, marshals started distributing free bottles of water at a tent near the Asian Civilisations Museum.

Later, as the crowd swelled, the marshals began carrying boxes of the bottled water to give out at different spots in the queue.

Staff from the museum also gave out paper fans for people to cool themselves with.

The Clarke Quay management also set up a table by the river, with tenants chipping in to provide drinks, cups, ice and straws for thirsty members of the public, said Ms Nicole Lem, 32, a senior executive with the Clarke Quay management team.

Along North Bridge Road, the Song Fa Bak Kut Teh eatery spent over $300 buying plain water, ice, plastic cups and a water dispenser for people who were waiting in line, said general operations manager Leonard Goh.

In addition, the restaurant set up three standing fans and chairs for seniors in the queue to rest on as they grew tired.

One of the Clarke Quay bars, Cuba Libre, also gave out iced water to those in the queue.

Over at Raffles Place MRT, florist shop Artisan de Fleurs gave away white flowers for free.