An elderly man saw a snake slithering along a sidewalk on the night of 10 February, at Jelapang Road in Bukit Panjang.
Afraid that the snake might hurt other people, the man used a rubbish bin and trapped the snake, before standing in the rain to warn other people about it for about an hour.
The Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES) was later notified about the incident by a passer-by, and the snake later died from severe injuries sustained in the incident.
ACRES later issued a reminder to the public not to trap, provoke or catch animals on their own, or even attempt to do it.
Stood in the rain warning passers-by
An eye-witness, 38-year-old Ms Feng, spoke to Shin Min Daily News and said that she was on her way home on 10 February at about 8.31pm with her daughter and maid.
They then came across a snake that was trapped under a rubbish bin, in the vicinity of Block 532 Jelapang Road, with the man standing about 1 to 2 metres away from it and warning them about getting too close.
The snake was seen being pinned down on the head by the rubbish bin, with the rest of it’s body outside the rubbish bin.
Feng said that she had initially thought the man was trying to catch the snake but found it odd that he was standing in the rain and telling people not to startle the reptile.
SMDN reported that the man didn’t know who to call for help to catch the same so he decided to take matters into his own hands.
Feng informed ACRES about the incident and the man was then brought to a nearby HDB building for shelter.
ACRES responds
Co-chief executive officer of ACRES, Kalai Vanan Balakrishnan, spoke to MustShareNews and said that they were alerted to the snake at about 9.30pm.
When officers arrived at the scene, they found a heavy rubbish bin lid placed on the snake, which sustained severe injuries and eventually dying.
He said that the snake was a keeled rat snake that measured 2 metres, and it’s pretty uncommon in Singapore.
He added that oftentimes, these snakes do not pose much of a danger and that it is misinformation that breeds the fear of snakes.
Balakrishnan reminded the public that if they see a snake, keep a safe distance and call them at their hotline 97837782 for advice, and not to take matters into their own hands.