Elderly man, 70, hurt as hawker centre seat comes apart
A 70-year-old man fell and hurt his head after the stool he was sitting on at Teck Ghee Square hawker centre came apart.
Photographs of the incident on Sunday night have been circulating on Facebook and online discussion forum Reddit.
They show the elderly man on the floor, which has a spot of blood, and a younger man pressing what looks like a paper napkin to the back of his head, presumably to stop the bleeding.
From the photos, it appears that the seat came off from the metal base it had been attached to, causing the man to fall.
The Singapore Civil Defence Force said it received a call for medical assistance at Block 409, Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10 at about 11pm.
A man was taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, it added.
The Straits Times understands that he suffered minor head injuries.
INVESTIGATING
In response to queries, the Ang Mo Kio Town Council yesterday said it was alerted to the incident on Sunday night and is investigating.
"We have not been able to establish the identity of the elderly man but we are doing all we can to reach out to his family members," a town council spokesman said.
The spokesman said that all the stools at the hawker centre, numbering close to 600, and tables are being checked to ensure that they are secure and meet standard safety requirements.
"Each seat is secured to the metal base using four screws as well as 'max bond' glue," the spokesman added.
The incident happened just two days after Teck Ghee Square market and hawker centre reopened after a two-month closure.
In March, the town council said the centre would be closed from April 1 to May 31 for repair, redecoration and upgrading works.
The town council spokesman yesterday said the contractor was on site to rectify any issues and ensure the tables and chairs are secured by the same day.
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