Part of Yishun HDB bathroom ceiling collapses after renovation upstairs

A large chunk of plaster fell from the ceiling of a Housing and Development Board unit in Yishun, where an 86-year-old woman was at home at the time.

Heard a loud crashing sound

According to Shin Min Daily News, the incident took place on Aug. 17 at a unit at Block 118 Yishun Ring Road.

The woman's son, surnamed Chen (transliteration), told the Chinese-language media that only his mother and wife were home when the incident happened.

At around 9am that morning, the pair heard a loud crashing sound coming from the kitchen bathroom.

When they went to investigate, they found that part of the ceiling above the sink had collapsed, with chunks of plaster scattered across the floor.

Chen said his mother usually uses the toilet at around the same time every morning.

Had she gone in a few minutes later that day, she could have been struck by the falling plaster, he said.

Ongoing renovation works

Aware that renovation works were being carried out in the flat above his unit, Chen decided to contact the authorities in hopes of getting the matter resolved, Shin Min reported.

At around 1:30pm, a man believed to be an employee from the authorities arrived to inspect the damage.

He took photographs of the affected area before heading upstairs to the unit above.

"They told me that once the renovations are finished, the contractor in charge of the renovations upstairs will coordinate with us," Chen said.

Chunk of plaster weighed about 2 to 3kg

According to Chen, the fallen piece of plaster was about 50cm long, 30cm wide and 5cm thick.

He also noticed that the steel reinforcement bars in the ceiling had been exposed after the plaster had fallen away.

Chen subsequently went upstairs to take a look and found several migrant workers carrying out renovation works in the unit.

He told them what had happened and asked if they could help him clear the fallen plaster.

They agreed and helped place the fallen plaster, which Chen estimated weighed about 2kg to 3kg, into a bag before taking it away for disposal.

"We've lived here for over 10 years, and this is the first time something like this has happened," Chen said. "Luckily, my mother wasn't hit. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

A Shin Min reporter who visited the block on Aug. 18 found a renovation notice posted near the HDB lift, stating that works were being carried out at the unit above.

According to the notice, the renovation works were scheduled from Aug. 11 to Sep. 9, with demolition works slated to take place from Aug. 11 to 13.

Cracks appeared in the ceiling of the master bedroom toilet

Chen also told Shin Min that small cracks began appearing in the ceiling of his master bedroom bathroom on the first day of the demolition works in the unit above.

"We started to worry then, and the kitchen bathroom was affected yesterday," he said.

He said the family remained concerned about loose plaster falling from the ceiling, but had no choice but to continue using the bathroom for the time being.

Chen added that he had asked the workers to remove some of the loose plaster in the kitchen bathroom area to reduce the risk of further pieces falling.

Speaking to Shin Min, the contractor carrying out the renovation works at the unit above said she was aware that pieces of plaster had fallen from the ceiling of the unit below.

She said the renovation works involved two bathrooms and a kitchen, with waterproofing works also being carried out in the bathrooms.

According to the contractor, Chen had contacted the renovation team about two or three weeks ago to report that the ceiling was starting to leak.

Although the renovation notice stated that demolition works would take place over three days, the contractor said it was completed on the first day.

She suspected that water from the leak had caused the plaster on the ceiling to become loose, making it prone to falling with even a slight impact.

"Nevertheless, we don't want to shirk our responsibility, and we will repair it free of charge after the renovation is completed," she said.