STOMPer James and his friend Philip rescued a
drowning man from Bedok Reservoir yesterday morning (Jan 18). The
man, a Singaporean, was later arrested for attempted suicide.
James elaborates:
"My friend Philip and I jog regularly every Wednesday and Friday at
5am. We live at Waterfront Waves - a condo near Bedok
Reservoir.
"We met at playground yesterday morning (Jan 18) to warm up for our
5am run. Philip asked me to decide the route (our usual route is to
go in the direction of Sheng Siong) and I told him we should try
Bedok Reservoir.
"When we had almost run to the other end (near the Forest Adventure
centre) , I wanted to turn back as I was very tired, but I wanted
to push myself further, so I decided not to signal Philip to turn
back and continued on.
"While running, we suddenly saw a little head and hands struggling
on the reservoir's horizon. Initially I thought, Wow... so early
got people come to Bedok Reservoir to swim??
"But on second glance, we found something amiss after hearing
"help" from that man. I asked Philip to double check and confirm
that the guy is struggling. We quickly ran to the shore and shouted
to the guy in Chinese (he looked like China guy ).
"With no one around at Bedok Reservoir, Philip decided to jump in
to save the guy while I quickly called the police.
"Philip saved the guy from the water and that guy was basically
breathless and pale. He could not talk and probably also vomited at
least one pail of reservoir water out from his stomach.
"We let him rest and the police, PUB officials and SCDF arrived 15
minutes later. Statements were taken from us and the guy.
"The police were trying to ascertain whether that guy was trying to
commit suicide (it is an chargeable offence to commit suicide ),
and he was being questioned a lot.
" That guy had lost the wallet and his slippers inside the
reservoir and had no ID. He most probably he will need to be
escorted back to the police post for further investigation.
"We had to jog back to our home after this incident, tired and
wet."
A spokesperson from the police said:
"Police received a call on January 18 at about 5.20am, requesting
for assistance at Bedok Reservoir Park.
"When police arrived, a 42-year-old Singaporean man was arrested
for attempted suicide.
"Police investigations are ongoing."
If you or someone you know needs help, please call these
hotlines:
Samaritans of Singapore: 1800-221-4444 (24-hour
line)
Youth Line: 6336-3434 (Mondays to Fridays,
8.30am-6pm)
Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports’ (MCYS)
ComCare Call (1800- 222 0000)
_________________________________________________
wth. Again...
