A 31-year-old Singaporean man was killed after being struck by a machine at a worksite and pinned down yesterday morning (27 December).

The machine toppled while being moved by a forklift and hit him.

The fatal accident took place at a worksite at 601 Rifle Range Road, near Upper Peirce Reservoir which is being occupied by ST Engineering Advanced Material Engineering.

The deceased was a worker of RCM Resources, and he was conveyed to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital unconscious, before succumbing to his injuries and being pronounced dead.

He is the 45th workplace fatality this year so far.

MOM said that it is crucial that forks be inserted below a load when using forklifts, and to make sure the load is stable before raising it for transfers so as to prevent any accidental toppling of the load.

The 45 workplace fatalities this year have already exceeded last year’s 37 deaths and is the highest since 2016, when 66 deaths were recorded.

Facebook user Wak Yan shared how he and his wife lost their savings to a scammer on Carousell, losing their money meant for his daughter with special needs.

Here is what he said

AWARENESS POST

HUMBLE HUSTLE EPIC FAIL

… to what appeared to us as Carousell Pay Protection

Being parents of 5 kids (with one special needs daughter, Husna), my wife Purpley Qim and I are frugal… thus, we are avid CarouSell users.

(… to get good deals on pre-loved items and to liquidate some cash. Yeah.. you get my drift~)

So wifey decided to sell an unused money box for $15. (Cheap² lelong²!!)

After posting it in the morning, she got a message from keen buyer (justniezam) at 6.19pm. So, as usual, she engaged in the conversation in hopes to close the deal ASAP.

(… well it’s just $15.. why waste time right?)

Everything seemed normal.. AND THEN….

user justniezam asked:

“I WANT TO ARRANGE CAROUSELL PROTECTION, IF YOU DON’T MIND, I’LL PAY FIRST!”

Wifey was like, Carousell Pay Protection? That’s new. Our payment terms were usually PayNow or Cash on Delivery. But Carousell Pay Protection? For a $15 item? Wow! This person is a very cautious buyer. Perhaps he was conned before. Kesian…

(… yes, wifey is a pure-hearted angel. Always husnuzhon. Love you, Wifey.)

Well, you know, our experiences with past buyers & sellers had been really good and hassle-free. We have been dealing with honest and reasonable people. Super easy to deal with kind. Everyone was very “sikit-lebih-kurang” (“very reasonable” in Malay). We were complacent this time. We assumed that it’ll all be the same…

… and then it happened…

Justniezam told wifey that he already made payment and in order for her to receive the money, all she has to do is to click on the email link. She gave him my email address so she texted me asking to check if I received it.

(… I was driving with the kiddos at that time ).

When I reached home, wifey told me what happened and so I checked my email. And yes, the email was indeed in my junk mail.

And I, this one big goondoo… DIDN’T VALIDATE AND VERIFY THE EMAIL!!!

(… like how I usually do at work and I’ll never forgive myself for this grave mistake ).

I immediately clicked on the link.

A page appears. It says, something like, “to receive your payment, login to your bank account.” And so I clicked it without thinking.

(… it didn’t occur to me to screenshot that page so I can’t show you guys).

The usual login page of DBS iBanking appeared (so it seemed) and I just logged in.

Next thing, the loading page appears saying

“WAIT. WE ARE WAITING FOR AN ANSWER FROM THE BANK…”

I was like… it’s 7pm, and a Friday evening.. are bankers still working at this hour??

Azan Maghrib was kumandang-ing on our phones… So we didn’t think much of it, put our phones on the table and just went to take ablution and prepared ourselves for evening prayers.

(FYI, my wife was communicating with justniezam on CarouSell message on her phone and I’m on my phone trying to login to the bank.)

Next moment, a chat box appeared on my phone whilst the page was “loading”, it told me to change account.

Told Wifey so Wifey logged in to her account.

OTP page came out on my phone. Wifey said out the number and I punched in those six-digit numbers.

I got irritated with the “latency” and so I told my wife to just put the phone down and to just start praying.

After completing prayers and being spiritually charged, Wifey checked on the bank transaction immediately.

Then….

WIFEY’S FACE CHANGED.

I SENSED HEIGHTENED TENSION IN THE AIR.

My wife said to me in a shaky voice…

“Abanggg… kita dah tak ada duit!! DUIT HUSNA SEMUA HILANGGG!!!”

(Dear… we don’t have any more money! Husna’s savings are gone!!!)

I told my wife to immediately check the transaction.

There, we saw it. We swallowed the bitter reality. We saw the funds were remitted to a lady in Thai Baht currency.

Wifey called DBS bank immediately.

After long verifications and conversations and investigations…

.. the DBS officer finally said those words on loudspeaker:

“MA’AM, WE BELIEVE THAT WAS A SCAM.”

I stopped breathing momentarily and I felt like a huge slap on my face.

Wifey controlled her emotions, tears and voice and followed the instructions given by the DBS officer til the end.

Accounts are frozen.

She took down the officer’s email address.

Went back to Carousell message and called on the scammers bluff.

The final words were:

“What goes around, comes around.

Let God deal with you.”

Scammer’s final words:

“sps.”

Sps? Wth is sps?? At this point, we couldn’t care less what it meant.

And then the account got suspended.

Then a police report was lodged.

Fit-for-Gifting Notes for Lunar New Year Available from 5 January

Singapore, 27 December 2022… The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) strongly encourage members of the public to use “Fitfor-Gifting” currency notes (Fit notes) or e-hong baos this coming Lunar New Year. These are more environmentally friendly options, as issuing new notes just to meet the demand for festive gifting generates unnecessary carbon emissions and wastes resources.

Fit notes are used currency notes that are generally clean and of suitable quality for recirculation, including for festive gifting. The condition of these notes has been verified by banknote processing machines and are similar in quality to notes from automated teller machines (ATMs).

The public demand for notes for festive gifting is typically in bundles of $2 or $10 denominations, which cannot be easily obtained in the desired quantities from ATMs. To bring greater convenience to the public, DBS, OCBC and UOB will offer online reservation for Fit Notes, in addition to new notes. DBS and UOB will also provide for the withdrawal of Fit notes i.e., $2 and $10 in larger quantities, as well as the $50 denomination, from selected pop-up and branch ATMs.

Customers of DBS, OCBC, UOB (except those aged 60 and above and persons with disabilities) that wish to exchange for either Fit or new notes at bank branches will need to pre-book through the respective bank’s online reservation system. This will minimise the likelihood of over-crowding at bank branches. New notes can also be withdrawn without any prior booking at pop-up ATMs offered by DBS and selected UOB ATMs. Customers of other banks may refer to their bank’s website for details on new and Fit notes exchange. Annex A
provides more information.

The dates for the pre-booking and exchange of Fit and new notes are as follows:

Apart from Fit notes, members of the public are also encouraged to use e-hong baos during this festive period. For the coming Lunar New Year, banks have enhanced their e-hongbao offerings, such as personalisation of e-hong baos. E-hong baos are a simple and speedy way to convey blessings to family and friends via electronic fund transfers.

SECURITY AND TRAFFIC ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE MARINA BAY SINGAPORE COUNTDOWN 2023

The Marina Bay Singapore Countdown (MBSC) to 2023 will be held on 31 December 2022. The Police are expecting large crowds to join in the festivities around Marina Bay.

Safety and Security Arrangements

Police officers, auxiliary police officers, and security officers will be deployed to ensure the safety and security of the public, as well as to manage crowds at various locations within the vicinity of Marina Bay during MBSC 2023. Officers from the Special Operations Command, Protective Security Command, Public Transport Security Command, Police Coast Guard, Traffic Police, Emergency Response Teams and Aerial Response Team will also be deployed alongside officers from the land divisions, to conduct enhanced patrols during this period.

Security personnel may conduct checks on members of the public, including their bags and personal items. Members of the public are advised to cooperate with these officers to facilitate the checks. The Police would also like to remind the public to remain vigilant and adopt the following crime prevention measures:

a) Look after your belongings at all times;

b) Be cautious when approached by strangers who try to get very close to you;

c) Stay close to your friends or move around in groups;

d) Be vigilant against molesters and pickpockets;

e) Avoid carrying large amounts of cash or wearing excessive jewellery to crowded places;

f) Ensure your bag is closed at all times and sling it in front of you;

g) Avoid placing your wallet in your back pocket; Avoid contact or confrontation with unruly crowds; and

h) Approach any Police officer or dial ‘999’ for urgent assistance.

Members of the public are reminded not to engage in activities that may annoy or compromise the safety of others. Flying of any unmanned aircraft, including drones, in the vicinity of the MBSC 2023 events will endanger the safety of others and interfere with the programming. Members of the public are also strongly advised not to cycle in the vicinity of Marina Bay as the area will be congested and the risk of collision with pedestrians is high. The Police will not hesitate to take action against anyone who causes public nuisance, acts rashly or breaks the law.

To prevent overcrowding, police officers and auxiliary police officers will be regulating the number of people entering The Promontory, One Fullerton / Merlion Park, Esplanade Park, Esplanade Waterfront Promenade, Marina Bay Sands Waterfront Promenade, and other areas within the vicinity of Marina Bay. When the capacity of these areas reaches planned safety thresholds, these areas will be closed to ensure the safety of members of the public. Please refer to the map below for the possible area closures.

Members of the public are encouraged to check out the Crowd@MarinaBay map, at https://go.gov.sg/crowd-at-marina-bay, to view real-time crowd levels and area closures around the Marina Bay before proceeding to the vicinity of Marina Bay for the festivities.

In addition, certain entrances/exits of MRT stations around the Marina Bay will be closed to regulate crowd flow at the above-mentioned areas. In the event of overcrowding, trains may bypass affected stations such as Bayfront MRT station to divert crowd away from these crowded areas. Members of the public are advised to be patient and to follow the instructions of the marshals and police officers on duty.

MRT Stations including City Hall, Raffles Place and Bayfront MRT stations are expected to be very crowded. Members of the public are encouraged to use other nearby MRT stations such as Esplanade MRT station, Downtown MRT station and Marina Bay MRT station.

The footways along the Esplanade Bridge and Bayfront Ave are to be used for transit only. Pedestrians are advised not to congregate on these footways.

Traffic Arrangements

To facilitate the event, the following roads and lanes will be closed to all vehicular traffic during the stipulated periods:

Members of the public are advised to take public transport to Marina Bay as parking spaces in the vicinity are expected to be limited. Vehicles parked in the buildings located within the closed roads may not be able to exit during the period of road closures. Please refer to the road closure map below.

Auxiliary Police Officers will be stationed at all affected road junctions to regulate traffic and assist motorists. Traffic Advisory Signs and electronic Variable Message Signs will also be put up near the affected roads. Motorists are encouraged to tune in to the radio for the latest traffic updates.

Parking at peripheral roads and stopping of vehicles along ECP (Benjamin Sheares Bridge) to watch the fireworks are strictly prohibited. Enforcement action will be taken against errant motorists and parked vehicles which cause obstruction will be towed.

Post-Event Dispersal

After the event, the dispersal is likely to be slow due to the large crowds. There will be designated routes out of the Marina Bay, including the area closures, to facilitate safe and orderly dispersal. Signages will be put up to guide members of the public on the route to be taken for dispersal. Crowd flow into the train stations will also be regulated to prevent overcrowding within the stations. Members of the public are advised to be patient and cooperate with security personnel. We seek the public’s understanding that heavy traffic and delays are to be expected.

While the Police have put in place enhanced security measures, everyone has a critical role to play in ensuring the safety and security of Singapore.

As we enjoy the festivities, we urge everyone to #StayAlert, #StayUnited and #StayStrong in our fight against crime and terrorism. Anyone with information on suspicious persons or activities can contact the Internal Security Department at 1800-2626-473 or the Police at 999 or SMS to 71999. Members of the public can also download the SGSecure App from Google Play Store or the Apple App Store to provide information to the authorities.

For enquiries on MBSC 2023 programmes and activities, members of the public may call the event hotline at 6950 3263 or visit www.marinabaycountdown.sg. They can also refer to the Marina Bay Singapore Facebook page for timely updates on the crowd situation on New Year’s Eve and plan their routes and activities accordingly.