77YO Retired Cabby Dies After Being Hit By Taxi At IKEA Alexandra


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After a lifetime of blood, sweat, and tears, one would expect to be able to finally live out the rest of their days peacefully after retirement.

Unfortunately, that doesn’t work out for everybody.

77-year-old Mr Oh Ah Lek’s retirement tragically ended abruptly in a regrettable tragedy.

Last Saturday (7 September), Mr Oh was shopping with his family at the IKEA branch on Alexandra Road.

At around 7:35 pm, he was hit by a taxi exiting the drop-off point while crossing the road.

His wife, Madam Lam, and their son heard a loud sound at the moment of impact.

They quickly turned around and, to their horror, found Mr Oh underneath the taxi.

Apparently, the taxi driver did not even realise that he had hit someone until his son, Mr Norman Oh, knocked on his car to alert him to the accident.

He remained conscious as the paramedics rushed him to National University Hospital (NUH).

Unfortunately, the elder Oh passed away seven hours later after undergoing three operations.

Friend, Cheerful, and Loving

In a tragic irony, Madam Lam revealed that Mr Oh also worked as a taxi driver since his 20s and only retired at the age of 73.

Mr Oh’s family said he was a friendly and cheerful person who participated in temple activities actively and also enjoyed spending time with his grandchildren.

His daughter, Miss Oh Li Mei, recounted how he travelled all the way to Chinatown just to place an order for two lanterns for her children.

His son, Mr Norman Oh, stated that he and his family were “still in a state of shock” and “were not prepared for his death” as they were “very close to him”.

“We loved him very much”, he said.

Miss Oh also voiced her wish for additional safety features near the accident site to prevent history from repeating itself.

In the wake of this tragedy, let’s remember to not point fingers and blame the taxi driver.

It was, after all, an accident.


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However, we do offer our deepest condolences to Madam Lam and her family.

Rest In Peace, Mr Oh.