Man found unresponsive & holding e-cigarette on bus along TPE, bus service halted, man sent to hospital

A man was conveyed to the hospital after he was found unresponsive while holding an e-cigarette on board an SMRT bus.

The bus was on the Tampines Expressway (TPE) heading towards Seletar Expressway (SLE) on Jul. 1 evening.

Speaking to Stomp, a witness claimed that there were blood stains on the floor underneath the man's seat.

Witness account of what happened

According to the witness, the man appeared to have been vaping throughout his journey, reported Stomp.

Upon noticing something was amiss, another passenger reported the man to the bus captain.

The bus captain subsequently stopped the bus to check on the man, recounted the witness.

He then decided to stop the bus' journey and asked other passengers to take the next bus.

At the same time, the bus captain also reported the incident to his company, said the witness.

What video showed

In a video the witness shared with Stomp, the bus captain could be seen standing next to the man, checking on his condition and asking him some questions.

Several drops of blood could be seen on the floor beneath the seats, and the man seemed dazed and unresponsive.

Later on, some passengers were seen alighting from the bus.

Holding tightly onto an e-vaporiser in his right hand, the man placed his left hand and a white tote bag on the seat next to him.

Police, SCDF called to the scene

In response to Mothership's queries, SMRT Buses' Deputy Managing Director Vincent Gay revealed that the bus involved in the incident was a service 110 bus.

According to Gay, the bus captain was alerted to the unconscious passenger at around 6:10pm on Jul. 1.

At the time, the bus was stationary at a bus stop along the TPE towards Punggol.

The bus captain approached the passenger and found him unresponsive, holding an e-cigarette.

The bus captain "promptly rendered assistance" and remained with the man until the ambulance and police officers arrived.

"In the meantime, all other passengers were safely transferred to another bus to continue their journey," Gay said.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) confirmed with Mothership that they received a call for assistance regarding the passenger at around 6:15pm on Jul. 1.

The man was subsequently conveyed to Sengkang General Hospital.

Commuters encouraged to report similar incidents

In the statement, Gay said that SMRT Buses strongly encourages passengers who encounter similar incidents to report them to its staff immediately.

Commuters can also report such incidents to the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) by calling the Tobacco Regulation Branch at 6684 2036 or 6684 2037 between 9am to 5:30pm from Mondays to Fridays.

Top images via Stomp