Motorist hurt as falling chair hits car on CTE

Mr Alex Chang was taken to hospital with neck pain and glass in his throat after a chair fell from above and hit the windscreen of his car along the CTE early on Monday morning.
Mr Alex Chang was taken to hospital with neck pain and glass in his throat after a chair fell from above and hit the windscreen of his car along the CTE early on Monday morning. PHOTOS COURTESY OF CARLERS THIO

A man was taken to hospital with neck pain and glass in his throat after a plastic chair fell from above and hit his car along the Central Expressway (CTE) in the wee hours of Monday

Ms Carlers Thio, a 24-year-old DJ at night club LUXI Dolls, told The Straits Times yesterday that she had been with her friend Alex Chang on the way home when she saw a red chair falling.

"We were driving on the CTE and right before we entered the Chin Swee tunnel, a red stool fell from above," said Ms Thio.

She did not see who threw it or where it came from, but she said it could have fallen from a lorry travelling in the opposite direction, or someone could have thrown it from the overhead bridge.

Mr Chang, her 32-year-old colleague, was driving when it happened.

"He screamed and swallowed little pieces of glass," she said. "I saw the chair from afar. I saw it drop from above but I thought it was a red plastic bag."

Mr Alex Chang was taken to hospital with neck pain and glass in his throat after a chair fell from above and hit the windscreen of his car along the CTE early on Monday morning. PHOTOS COURTESY OF CARLERS THIO

Mr Chang stopped the car only when the chair hit the windscreen, shattering it with "quite a big impact", said Ms Thio.

He suffered neck pain and Ms Thio had whiplash.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force said it was alerted to the accident which required ambulance assistance along the CTE, towards the Seletar Expressway, at 12.30am on Monday.

The police said a 32-year-old man was taken conscious to Tan Tock Seng Hospital and that police investigations into the case of a rash act along the CTE near Clemenceau exit are ongoing.

Mr Chang, a singer, was in the hospital for 11/2 days and was discharged on Tuesday, Ms Thio said.

"Usually my baby is with me, but thank God that day it was after work so my baby was not with me," she added.

"Now when we drive, right before we go into a tunnel we will be on the lookout."

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on May 12, 2017, with the headline Motorist hurt as falling chair hits car on CTE. Subscribe