S'pore man finds faeces-filled tissues, soiled adult diapers on ledge outside Bukit Batok HDB flat window

Ever since moving into his HDB flat in July 2023, a man in Singapore has opened his bedroom windows to an unwelcome sight: toilet paper and adult diapers filled with faeces.

The Bukit Batok resident, who gave his name as Sam, told Mothership that the waste was flung down from a unit in a higher level.

He lives on the second floor of the four-storey building, and his window looks out onto a ledge.

"I cannot open my windows because it really stinks. And I feel like vomiting whenever I take a look at it, so I just close my blinds," he said.

As the soiled tissues and diapers land on the second-floor ledge and not the ground level, they are often left there for months, Sam said.

He added that the littering continued even after he lodged complaints with the Town Council and the National Environment Agency (NEA).

"Disgusting"

Sam said that when he first moved in to the flat, he noticed there were already "some very old, stained tissue papers" on the ledge.

After writing into HDB and the Town Council, they cleaned up the litter.

The littering also stopped briefly.

But late last year, it abruptly began again.

Faeces-filled tissues, and even soiled adult diapers, landed regularly outside his window.

Disgusted at the litter, Sam submitted information through the OneService app, and was informed that advisories had been issued to the upper-floor residents.

NEA also told him that they were "looking into deploying surveillance cameras" to identify the culprit.

In addition to the odour, Sam said that the soiled diapers pose a hygiene risk.

This is because the ledge is located above a coffee shop on the ground floor.

"So when it rains, I'm very sure the faeces [contaminated] water is dripping onto the kitchen, the back part of the store," he said.

Photos shared with Mothership showed that the affected establishment is a seafood stall.

Asked if he'd confronted the upstairs neighbours, Sam said he prefers not to, for fear of retaliation.

Inaccessible

In email correspondence with Sam seen by Mothership, a representative of the Jurong-Clementi Town Council (JCTC) explained that the canopy is "inaccessible", except through Sam's flat.

This is because the ledge is actually a canopy attached to the ground-floor coffee shop, and is "unsafe for a person to stand on".

Sam said that he is in talks with the Town Council on how else the litter can be cleaned from the ledge.

He also confirmed that a camera was also set up by NEA for about two weeks, and subsequently taken down some time around Mar. 14.

But the issue of preventing the upstairs resident from continuing to litter remains, he added.

Response

In response to Mothership's queries, a spokesperson from JCTC said that they have taken "proactive steps" to address the problem, such as by issuing advisories to residents and putting up educational posters.

"Regrettably, high-rise littering continues," the spokesperson said.

"Upon receiving feedback of waste accumulated on window ledges from a resident, our property officer will promptly seek the resident's permission to allow our conservancy cleaners access to the affected ledge via the resident’s bedroom window."

The spokesperson also urged residents who possess information about the identity of the perpetrator to lodge a report via the OneService app.

Mothership has reached out to NEA and the Singapore Food Agency for more information.

High-rise littering

Since Jul. 1, 2023, if it is proven that littering acts have been committed from a residential flat, the registered owners or tenants will be presumed guilty of the offence unless they can prove otherwise.

The presumption can be rebutted by the owner or tenant by proving that he/she was not present in the flat at the time of the offence, and hence, proving that he/she could not have been the offender.

Alternatively, he/she may provide the identity of a person reasonably believed to be the offender.

"Littering from residential flats is a serious offence, as it poses a danger to the public, dirties the environment, and threatens public hygiene," NEA said previously.

NEA explained that the presumption clause places "greater onus on registered owners and tenants of residential flats to prevent littering from their flats".

If convicted of high-rise littering, a first-time offender may be fined up to S$2,000.

An offender may be fined up to S$4,000 for a second conviction, and S$10,000 for third and subsequent convictions.

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Top image from Sam