A 60-year-old woman has died after falling from a Housing and Development Board (HDB) block in Sembawang, prompting a police investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Emergency services were alerted to the case at about 5pm on Tuesday after reports of a fall from height at a residential block along Sembawang Crescent. When responders arrived, they found the woman unconscious at the scene.
She was subsequently transported to hospital for medical treatment but later succumbed to her injuries.
Authorities have classified the case as an unnatural death and investigations are currently ongoing. A 66-year-old man has also been taken in for questioning as part of the inquiry.
Argument Allegedly Took Place Before Incident
According to accounts from residents in the area, the woman was reportedly seen arguing with a man shortly before the fall occurred. The two individuals were believed to be living together in a unit within the same block.
When reporters arrived at the location, several police vehicles were parked nearby and officers had cordoned off the area beneath the block.
Some officers were also seen conducting checks at a corner unit on the eighth floor of the building.
A neighbour who lives nearby said she heard raised voices coming from the corridor outside her home earlier in the evening. Through the peephole of her door, she claimed to have seen the woman and the man engaged in a heated argument.
According to the resident, the confrontation lasted several minutes before the shouting stopped.
However, not long afterwards, she reportedly heard a scream coming from downstairs. When she looked out of the window, she noticed a single shoe on the ground below, leading her to suspect someone had fallen from the building.
Police Examine Corridor And Remove Evidence
Investigators later visited the neighbour’s unit to ask questions and also inspected a folding table that had been placed along the corridor.
The resident explained that the table was normally kept outside the flat but had been unfolded on that particular day. Police officers reportedly examined the surface of the table for possible footprints during their investigation.
The neighbour declined to speculate further on what might have happened, noting that she did not witness the fall directly and had remained inside her home throughout the incident.
However, she said she overheard the man telling officers that he had only just returned home from Sun Plaza, a nearby shopping mall.
Despite this claim, the neighbour maintained that she had clearly heard the two individuals arguing shortly before the incident occurred.
Students Witnessed Fall And Sought Help
Several members of the public reportedly saw the woman still showing signs of life after the fall before emergency responders arrived at the scene.
Investigators remained at the unit for several hours, conducting detailed checks and photographing the interior of the flat. Officers were later seen leaving the premises with several bags believed to contain evidence.
The folding table from the corridor was also removed for further examination.
At around 11pm, a man dressed in a short-sleeved plaid shirt and black shorts was seen leaving the unit accompanied by three police officers. He is believed to be the same individual who had been taken in to assist investigators.
In a separate account, a nurse working at a nearby clinic said several students rushed into the clinic seeking help after witnessing the fall. When the nurse stepped outside, paramedics were already providing emergency treatment to the woman.
Police later interviewed the students as part of the ongoing investigation, with the nurse noting that the witnesses appeared visibly shaken by the incident.