Tree that fell on Tanglin CC after Saturday's rain has been cleared

A tree which fell onto Tanglin Community Club last Saturday evening, after heavy rain, damaged the roof of its ceramics room.

The National Parks Board (NParks) said it was alerted to a fallen West Indian locust tree in Malcolm Park, off Whitley Road, around 8.30pm, following intense rainfall that day.

The tree was more than 24m tall with a girth of 4.6m, and the debris was cleared by 5pm on Monday.

No injuries were reported.

Mr Chua Lai Teck, chairman of the Tanglin CC management committee, said the affected area was immediately cordoned off for NParks to carry out its work. Classes that are held there, or in close proximity to it, have been suspended until further notice, he said.

NParks said its trees are generally inspected once in six to 24 months, with higher frequency depending on the locality and age of the trees.

They are also regularly pruned to improve their structure and balance. This is stepped up during adverse weather conditions to reduce the risk of such incidents.

As an added precaution, advanced inspections on trees more than 4m in girth have been carried out since November 2016.

Chinese language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao reported that a pottery teacher and an assistant were in one of the rooms when the tree fell, but neither was injured.

Heavy rain on Saturday afternoon caused flash floods across Singapore, especially in the western and central areas, in Dunearn Road near the Sime Darby Centre, and the park connector along Ulu Pandan Canal, with high water levels in adjacent drains and canals.

The heaviest rainfall of 161.4mm was recorded in western Singapore from 12.25pm to 3.25pm that day. A tree branch also fell onto a car in Lower Delta Road that day, smashing its windscreen.