SINGAPORE - She took a few steps after alighting from a taxi, fell into a drain, hit her head and lost consciousness.

If not for a passer-by who called for an ambulance, the 69-year-old woman believes she would have been in a worse state from the mishap, reported Chinese daily Lianhe Wanbao on Thursday (May 17).

The woman, identified in the Chinese paper as Ms Teo, had returned to her home in Jervois Road from an outing at Sentosa on May 1 at around 8.30pm.

Upon alighting from the taxi, she lost her bearings, fell into a 2m-deep drain and lost consciousness.

When she finally regained consciousness half an hour later, Ms Teo said she found herself at the Singapore General Hospital, but had no idea how she got there, Lianhe Wanbao reported.

She suffered injuries to her head and had to receive six stitches. She was hospitalised for three days.

She told the Chinese newspaper that she believes a kind-hearted passer-by had called for an ambulance to take her to the hospital.

Ms Teo said she believes the incident occurred because of a lack of sleep, as she had woken up at about 4am that day. It also did not help that it was dark and she did not notice the drain as she alighted from the cab, she told Lianhe Wanbao.

She decided to share her story with the Chinese newspaper to express her gratitude to the passer-by who helped her.

"I'm relieved that I managed to survive the fall, and it's all thanks to a stranger," she said.