The Electric New Paper
He may have suffered painful and ugly injuries.
But Yes DJ Dennis Chew still joked about them yesterday,
saying:
It'll make me more
manly
By Chong Zheng Ying, 23 May 2007
IT will probably be a while before you hear Yes 93.3 DJ Dennis Chew
on the air again.
And if you see him now, you might not recognise him.
He is recuperating in hospital after a bad fall in Pulau Ubin on
Sunday.
He had been there on a cycling and photography trip with
friends.
He had abrasions on his face, a left arm broken in two places, four
chipped teeth and another tooth missing.
Dennis being fed by his mother
The 33-year-old radio and TV personality was all pain and misery
when The New Paper visited him at Changi General Hospital
yesterday.
He mumbled, through a swollen mouth: 'It hurts to even talk. If I
wasn't on painkillers, I probably wouldn't even be able to speak to
you now.'
In a three-hour operation on Sunday night, doctors inserted two
metal plates and 12 screws in his left arm.
He said: 'My arm was curved like a snake after the accident. I
almost fainted when I saw the X-ray.'
Better known as Zhou Chong Qing to
Yes 93.3 listeners, the DJ is normally heard on-air on weekdays
from 4.30pm to 8.30pm.
He was also known for his outrageous dressing and hairdos as one of
the judges of last year's Channel U singing competition
SuperBand.
Despite his pain, he managed to joke about his condition. Referring
to the stage character Phantom of the Opera, he said of the
injuries on his face: 'I'm now the 'Phantom' of radio, I'll have to
wear a mask to work.'
Although he didn't need stitches on his face, he said his doctor
felt he may be permanently scarred.
Then the baby-faced Dennis quipped: 'Never mind, it will make me
look more manly.'
He had taken a bum boat to Pulau Ubin from Changi Jetty with four
friends on Sunday morning.
The avid photographer said they wanted to take pictures of kampung
life in the hopes of organising a photo exhibition with Yes
93.3.
They rented bicycles and it was while navigating a steep sloped
T-junction on a small dirt track that Dennis fell.
He said: 'I was trying to brake as I was going down the slope, but
I ended up flying off my bike instead. After that I just blacked
out. I knew there were people around me as I could faintly hear
their voices, but I couldn't consciously know what was going
on.'
One of his friends, who declined to be named, told The New Paper
that they called the police and then wrapped up Dennis' hand as
best as they could.
'We got a bumboat and called for an ambulance to wait at Changi
Jetty,' he said.
At the moment, it looks like Dennis will take a long time to
recover. He can hardly smile or open his mouth as there are raw
wounds on his upper lip and at the side of his mouth.
He can take only porridge and liquid supplements.
But on the bright side, he has the support of his friends and
family, who have filled his hospital room with soft toys and
hampers.
Said Dennis: 'It's at times like these when you realise how much
your friends and family love you.'
He said his parents got news of his fall only when his younger
sister heard the announcement on Yes 93.3 yesterday morning. He was
due to report to work yesterday.
His sister immediately alerted the family and they rushed down to
the hospital.
Said Dennis: 'This was the first time my Dad has cried in front of
me. I now know that he loves me very much, just that he doesn't
often show it.'
His mother, a 60-year-old housewife who wanted to be known only as
Madam Lim, said in Mandarin: 'I'm very thankful that most of his
injuries are only skin deep.
'It could have been worse. Luckily he didn't hit his head.
'I couldn't stop crying this afternoon as I was feeding him lunch.
I just thank God he's alive.'
Ever optimistic, Dennis said he hopes to be back on air in one or
two weeks, though his arm will take three to six months to fully
heal.
'I don't really need my arm to work. I'm hoping to get my teeth
fixed soon so I won't sound so weird on air,' he said, adding with
a laugh, 'My station needs me!'
What will be off his itinerary is a trip to Australia's Gold Coast,
part of his travel guide duties with Dynasty Travel.
And though Pulau Ubin now holds painful memories for him, he said
he'll still continue to visit the island. But he'll probably stay
off two-wheelers for now.
'I will go back, but not to cycle. Cycling there is not a very good
idea for a clumsy person like me.'
