Tributes pour in for S’porean expedition leader Timothy 'Timo' Heng, 30, who died on Mount Dukono

Following the death of 30-year-old Heng Wen Qiang Timothy on Mount Dukono in Indonesia, friends and those from the outdoor community have posted tributes in remembrance.

The expedition leader was previously part of travel-focused media company The Travel Intern (TTI) and More Better. After leaving in 2024, he founded another travel company, The Outside.

According to his website, he had gone on expeditions to various countries, including South Africa, Nepal and Mongolia.

Tributes

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"The outdoor community in Singapore truly lost someone special," Kenneth Gabriel Wong, co-founder of outdoor apparel brand Goliath, wrote in a tribute on Instagram.

Wong recounted how Heng had messaged him on the morning of the climb, saying he would reply Wong when he's back.

"But hearing about your final actions, going back up to help Shahin, it was just so undeniably you," Wong wrote.

Heng is believed to have rushed back to the crater to help 27-year-old Shahin Muhrez bin Abdul Hamid, who had collapsed.

The two Singaporeans lost their lives after a large boulder pinned them down.

Another in the outdoor community remembers Heng as "one of the most mature and selfless people" he has ever met.

He said that while he hadn't known him for a long time, Heng was the one who reached out first to work together.

"We share dreams and I wanted to go ice climbing with him one day but this day will never come," he wrote.

The Royal Geographical Society -Singapore (RGS) also posted a tribute on Facebook, saying they were "deeply saddened by Heng's passing.

As a guest speaker in March 2026, he shared his experiences of training to become the first Singaporean anti-poaching ranger in South Africa, and undertaking frontline wildlife conservation work in the African Savanna, RGS said.

"His insightful talk has reshaped our understanding of the everyday challenges faced by anti-poaching rangers tasked with protecting wildlife in these environments," they wrote.

A friend who knew Heng since their days in National University of Singapore recounted their days in Temasek Hall making "silly videos" and venturing into their creative endeavours together.

"My creative journey is nothing without you, and you were the most important older brother I had in my uni life," he wrote.

Loved the outdoors

Speaking to Mothership, Heng's stepsister, Tessa Oh, said that her brother has always loved the outdoors and trekking in adulthood.

Oh described her brother as a "thrill seeker and daredevil" among the four siblings, and the one to "do things off the beaten path".

Oh also addressed negative comments online on risks Heng may have taken when going on Mount Dukono in her interview with CNA.

She said that while she was not involved in the expedition planning, she could speak to her step-brother’s character.

Appeal for compassion

“When it comes to something as serious as this, he would have definitely thought it through, and he wouldn’t have made any kind of ... reckless move”, she said.

“If he were to take such a risk, I think he would have taken it himself. He wouldn’t have put so many people in danger if he knew this was going to happen,” she said.

Oh said that while she can understand why people are making some of the comments, her “personal appeal as a sister is ... have some compassion”.

“If they had a family member who passed away, I don’t think they want to hear people make comments like these, especially since it's fresh.”