Falling Tree in Marsiling Park Kills A 38-Year-Old Woman; Tree Was Last Checked in April 2020

It is always tragic to hear about people passing away.

If you weren’t already aware, several people were killed in a car accident along Tanjong Pagar recently. The car spun out of control and crashed, bursting into flames not too long later.

Unfortunately, another incident has occurred, causing the death of a 38-year-old woman.

Falling Tree in Marsiling Park Kills A Woman

The police are currently investigating an incident where a tree fell in Marsiling Park and killed the 38-year-old woman.

According to The Straits Times, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) was alerted around 8.15am on Thursday (Feb 18).

They later arrived and managed to get the woman out from under the tree.

However, the paramedics later pronounced her dead at the scene.

CNA went to the scene later in the afternoon, noting that the tree wasn’t removed with part of it still in the pond.

Several People Went To Help

Some witnesses say that they heard a very loud sound before the tree toppled over.

Around 10 people saw the lady pinned under the tree and attempted to lift the tree, but were unsuccessful.

One Secondary Three student, who also went to help, said a loud crack and splash could be heard.

He then went with his friend to try and help the woman.

The student mentioned that emergency personnel arrived soon after and asked them to leave the area.

As of this writing, a section of the walkway has been cordoned off for safety.

The tree was identified as a 20m-tall Araucaria excelsa, with a girth of 1.3m by Dr Leong Chee Chiew, commissioner of parks and recreation at the National Parks Board. The Araucaria excelsa is also known as a star pine tree.

NParks is currently investigating the cause of the fall and stated when the tree was checked last April, it was deemed to be healthy.

“We are investigating the cause of the tree fall,” said Dr Leong. “We are sad that there was one fatality. Our priority now is to accord assistance to the family of the deceased.”

The police are still investigating the unnatural death.

Other Falling Tree Incidents

One can never be too careful as falling trees usually cause devastating damage.

And several cases have happened over the last few months.

Back on 13 Dec 2020, a large tree near a carpark in Toa Payoh suddenly fell.

Around four cars and motorcycles were damaged from the fall, though thankfully no one was hurt.

The town council and vice-chairman did not respond to the incident.

And remember how in November heavy rains caused flash floods and trees to fall?

One fell along MacPherson Road towards Paya Lebar and could not be passed, though it was cleared later in the afternoon.

Not too long later another one fell onto a car at Zion Road outside Great World City but was cleared under 40 minutes.

NParks had said that most trees in public areas are inspected once every six to 24 months.

For more information about the incident in Marsiling Park, click here.

Feature Image: Google Maps