Today, SMRT made the headlines again. Twice, in fact. But thankfully, one of them wasn’t caused by the public transport company.

Okay, let’s talk about the mini-disruption during peak hour first.

Passengers Evacuated From Train At Tanjong Pagar MRT Due To Gas Leakage

Now, on to the first news of SMRT. And this time, it’s not a track fault. It’s a gas leakage instead.

At 9.45 am, SMRT staff noticed white, odourless smoke coming from under the train at Tanjong Pagar MRT station.

The passengers were asked to alight by SMRT staff. Passengers, who noticed the smoke quickly comply despite no clear explanations.

They were advised to take the next eastbound train which arrived about 2 minutes later.

It was discovered that there was a leakage of Freon gas, a common refrigerant in air-conditioners. The gas is, thankfully, non-toxic in nature. However, prolonged exposure to the chemical might result in cutting off of oxygen to the lungs and cells.

A person in the affected train said that the evacuation was “orderly and calm”. The affected train was pulled from service for checks.

Woman Arrested For Appearing Naked At Pioneer MRT Station

In case you’re not aware, being naked in your own home is illegal. So illegal that you could be placed behind bars for up to 3 months, fined up to $2,000, or both.

So, given how you’re not allowed to flash your neighbours in your own private property, imagine how much worse it’ll be if you do it in public.

Like what happened at Pioneer MRT.

It was reported that a 35-year-old woman appeared naked at the platform of Pioneer MRT on the night of 6 June 2018.

Her pictures were taken and circulated on Whatsapp, showing her barefooted and standing at the platform.

An SMRT employee was seen trying to cover her with a blanket.

The police were alerted to the incident at 10.30 pm and arrested her under the Mental Health Act.

It was also believed that she was with a male companion at the time of the incident.

Yet Another E-Scooter Accident: This Time, The Victim is an Ex-Beauty Queen

Meet Cassandra Ho, former Elite Mrs Singapore and now, a victim of an e-scooter.

She was at Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park to pick some leaves for her a friend’s father when the accident happened.

She was taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, the SCDF confirms.

In an interview with Straits Times, she said that she hurt her face and head, and couldn’t remember much from the incident.

“I can’t remember much… the next thing I knew, I saw my husband and youngest son beside me in the accident and emergency ward.”

Today, public parks and pathways are no longer safe places for people to walk on. At least not with the errant personal mobility devices (PMDs) riders who go around at high speeds.

Think of it as motorcycles speeding along paths where people are walking. Except it’s worse.

Why? Because it’s perfectly legal.

Just yesterday, we wrote about a self-titled e-scooter rider in our app. Download our free app to read this app-exclusive article:

Young-Onset Dementia Increasing Alarmingly in S’pore

Growing old is an experience that most of us don’t want to go through. After all, wrinkles, white hair, aches and, possibly, dementia is something we don’t really want.

But here’s the thing.

Dementia, or 老人痴呆症, isn’t just for the elderly. It affects younger Singaporeans as well.

The National Neuroscience Institute (NNI) Neuroscience Clinic (Tan Tock Seng Hospital Campus) reported a “five-fold increase” in young-onset dementia.

It was estimated that around 4,000 people living in Singapore have young-onset dementia back in 2016, with young families to feed.

Here’s the bad news: part of it is genetics. If anyone in your family has young-onset dementia, it increases the chances of the children getting it as well.

Another part could be due to our lifestyles today, where more people are getting diabetes, high blood pressure and suffering from a stroke at a younger age.

So what can you do?

Experts say, lead a healthier lifestyle. That and to avoid a high cholesterol diet, smoking and drinking.

These are the things that’ll lead to a higher risk of dementia.

It’s found that if you do dancing, exercise regularly, eat healthily and do some brain-simulating things like crossword puzzles and games, you can reduce the risk of developing the disease.

Woman Reveals Her Painful Story About Going To Loan Sharks

When you need cash, no matter how urgently, never go to a loan shark because this could happen to you.

This was what happened to a woman, Mdm Tan (not her real name). She was 40 when she just got married with no savings.

They had to take out a $10,000 loan to pay a cash premium for the house. Then, her husband lost his job (which pays $3,000 a month).

The family couldn’t afford to service the monthly instalments for the loan and their furniture was seized twice, right in front of the children.

That was when she received a message promising ‘fast cash’.

She decided to borrow from them and got $20,000 “very fast”. However, the amount soon piled up into hundreds of thousands.

The terms kept changing and interest rates were sky high. When she got desperate and borrowed from another loan shark to return to the previous one, that’s when things got worse.

When she couldn’t pay up, the loan sharks sent threatening messages.

Finally, she couldn’t take it anymore and reported to the police. She estimated that she has paid them around $400,000 and have another $150,000 to go.

The lesson of the day? Mdm Tan tells other people in her situation to never, never, borrow from loan sharks.

Instead, look for welfare organisations or the correct agency for help.

MHA: Australian Denied Entry Because Of ‘Terrorism-Related’ Past

If you haven’t heard, this guy, Zaky Mallah, was detained at Changi Airport for five hours before being sent packing back to Australia.

The reason? Because of his terrorism-related past.

According to Channel News Asia, he was the first person to be charged under new terrorism laws in Australia.

He was allegedly planning a suicide attack on two government agencies. The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) and the Department of Foreign Affairs.

He was later cleared of two charges of preparing a terrorist act, but sentenced to two-and-a-half-year jail term for “threatening violence against Commonwealth (Australian government) officials”.

With the upcoming Trump-Kim summit, Singapore is taking no chances with the security of the event.

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