Clementi residents lose sleep as neighbour howls into the night
For almost a year now, residents of an HDB block in Clementi have been grappling with a bizarre nightly disturbance — a man howling "like a dog".
Mr Huang, a 47-year-old make-up artist and life-long resident of Block 731 Clementi West Street 2, told Shin Min Daily News that it used to be loud coughing and shouting, but it escalated into nightly howling.
“Sometimes, it sounds like a dog howling for minutes on end,” said Mr Huang, who shared an audio recording of continuous howling that lasted for five minutes.
"Other times, he yells in the middle of the night, making it impossible for me to sleep."
His 80-year-old mother, Madam Zhu, has been hit hardest by the nightly disruptions.
“I sleep in the master bedroom but the noise is unbearable. I’ve had to move to the living room but even there, my sleep is affected,” she said, adding that the lack of rest has begun to take a toll on her health.
Another neighbour, who wished to remain anonymous, said the noise had persisted for nearly a year, forcing her to spend almost $2,000 on soundproof windows.
“I even bought thick curtains but they don’t help much. The howling still gets through,” she lamented.
Ms Primanti, a 39-year-old maid, said the strange noises occured not just at night, but also in the afternoons and evenings.
Other residents voiced similar frustrations, with one saying: “My daughter has trouble concentrating in school because she can’t get enough rest at night.”
Residents identified the source of the noise as a middle-aged man who reportedly lives with his mother.
According to Mr Huang, a neighbour once approached the man’s mother to discuss the issue but she said her son was unwilling to seek medical help.
When the Chinese daily visited their flat, no one answered the door.
Mr Huang has since reported the issue to the authorities.
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