Telok Blangah HDB block residents affected by persistent foul smell, some resort to burning incense & using fans

A Housing and Development Board (HDB) block at Telok Blangah Crescent has been affected by a persistent foul odour for nearly a year, prompting some residents to install fans and burn incense outside their homes in an attempt to mask the smell.

A woman, surnamed Wang (transliteration), told Shin Min Daily News that she has lived at the block for over a decade and has always gotten along well with her neighbours.

However, about a year ago, after an elderly woman and her two adult sons moved into a unit on the 11th floor, Wang said she began to notice a strong smell of urine and faeces coming from the flat.

Persistent smell

Speaking to Shin Min, Wang said the elderly woman is frail and remains at home most of the time, while her sons take turns caring for her, working different shifts.

She said she believes the elderly woman suffers from incontinence, resulting in the persistent urine smell.

"Even when they keep the doors and windows closed on weekdays, we can still smell it," she said. "On weekends, when the doors and windows are open, the smell becomes even stronger."

Wang added that she is unable to communicate directly with the neighbours as she does not speak English.

As such, she resorted to placing a fan outside her home to blow the smell away and has recently begun burning incense in the corridor.

"Sometimes I have to switch on the fan as early as 5am, otherwise the smell drifts over. The fan runs almost all day, so my electricity bill has also increased as a result," she said.

She said she had previously reported the matter to the authorities and that volunteers had visited the unit to assess the situation, but no solution had been reached.

While acknowledging that the elderly woman’s sons were trying to care for their mother, Wang said she hoped they would consider placing her in a nursing home where she could receive professional care.

Another neighbour also told Shin Min that her family had also been affected by the odour.

"To avoid the smell, we have to keep our doors and windows shut every day," she said.

She added that whenever the neighbouring unit opened its doors or windows, the smell would spread into the corridor.

Even closing her own doors and windows did little to keep it out, she added.

At times, she said, she had to resort to wearing a face mask to sleep.

Assistance had been arranged

Speaking to Shin Min, one of the elderly woman’s sons said they had been contacted by several organisations and that assistance had been arranged to help clean the unit in the coming days.

He added that he was aware that neighbours had lodged complaints, but noted that none had approached him directly.

He said he hoped that residents would speak to him in person should similar issues arise in the future.

He added that since he and his brother were still able to care for their mother, they had not considered placing her in a nursing home.

Situation had improved recently

When Shin Min visited the block, it noted that the foul odour was still noticeable along the corridor outside, though an air freshener was placed near the window of the unit.

Residents living on the 12th and 13th floors told Shin Min that while they had previously noticed the smell, they believed it had eased significantly in recent weeks.

One resident on the 13th floor said he first noticed the smell about two months ago.

Initially, he said he thought the smell was coming from his own toilet, but later realised it was coming from a unit downstairs.

"The smell isn’t constant. Sometimes they switch on the air-conditioning, and you can’t smell it," he said. "But once the doors and windows are opened, the smell spreads."

Another resident said that officers from relevant agencies had previously visited the unit to help with cleaning and that the odour had improved noticeably in recent weeks.

"We’re all neighbours. The smell isn’t so severe that it disrupts our daily lives. We should all be understanding of one another," he said.