A man who went hiking along the Bukit Timah Expressway near Mandai Road on Sunday, March 21, called for assistance close to evening time after getting stuck in a drain with water up to his chest.

The Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team officers used rescue ropes to pull the man out, the Singapore Civil Defence Force's (SCDF) said.

They received a call for assistance at about 5.40pm.

The man was found after a few hours.

He was assessed by a paramedic for fall injuries, but refused to be taken to a hospital, SCDF said.

The hiker who got stuck in the drain even identified himself on Facebook subsequently to share photos of his exact location and what happened.

He wrote in a post, which has been edited for clarity to be published here:

What a day! I finally used my tax dollars... to seek rescue when I got stuck in a ravine while hiking along the tunnels at Woodlands alongside BKE. I made a wrong turn and made a bad choice. I learned my lesson. The police, SCDF and ambulance all came to rescue me. I was stuck and could not climb up. I asked my friend to call for rescue. They finally found me after a long time. Hmm. What a day...

Officers from the SCDF and the Singapore Police Force trekked about 2km to locate the man and then night fell.

Several police and SCDF vehicles, an ambulance and a fire medical vehicle, were parked by the side of the road.

After the rescue, the man said he was located only after a while.

However, he subsequently wrote on Facebook to thank his rescuers.

Top photo via hiker