Pee-Like Smell Hits Yishun & Punggol That Caused ‘Giddiness’

Lest you’re unaware, Singapore has been ravaged by a terrifying phenomenon of late:

A serious heat wave.

Being cooked left right and centre, Singaporeans have flocked into air-conditioned buildings for the sake of their sanity, and even then it’s still a serious battle to retain it.

But if you think you’re unlucky…

Think again.

For somewhere in Yishun and Punggol, residents aren’t just dealing with potential heat strokes and sunburns, but a serial epidemic that reeks and stinks of death:

A pee wave.

Giddiness and nausea

According to Mothership, Yishunites and Punggolians alike have been smelling a not-so-pleasant scent in the air recently, and apparently, it’s that of the golden liquid:

Pee.

On 15 March, Shin Min Daily News reported that some Punggolians have experienced giddiness and nausea, following prolonged exposure to what they call “The Smell”.

Clarifications

With mounting complaints and increasing intensity of pee waves, it was only a matter of time before someone had to step up and offer clarifications. In this instance, it happened to be our local MP Lee Bee Wah.

On 13 March, the Nee Soon GRC MP took to Facebook to address the issue, well aware that some residents have complained of the stench.

“Some residents told me that the air in Yishun Town had urine smell yesterday,” she wrote.

“I checked with NEA. NEA said this is likely from Johor.

NEA is in close touch with the Dept of Environment (Johor), and they tell us they are trying their best.”

So to sum it up, the scent’s likely to emanate from Johor, and Singapore authorities are currently in close contact with the Malaysian authorities regarding the matter.

Netizens react

After Lee Bee Wah’s response, Netizens turned up in droves to discuss the situation. And unfortunately (or fortunately), some of them happen to be the ‘lucky’ ones.

Some, for the record, were also pretty pissed about the smell.

Now, if I didn’t know better, I would’ve thought that they were taking the piss. The one below, however, is definitely taking the piss.

Speculations

According to Mothership, there’s a number of possible reasons attributing to the pee wave:

• Hot spots in Johor

Reported by the NEA to emanate a ‘hazy’ smell, there are three hot spots in southern Johor that are believed to have come about as a result of slash and burn farming.

It didn’t help that wind directions are pretty prevalent as well, carrying the smell and smoke over to our shores.

• Burning of rubbish to get rid of pests

In February, landfill fires were also reported in Johor. The smell, believed to have been carried by the same prevailing winds, is reportedly pretty foul and acrid in nature too.

• Chemical dumping into river incident

In their most-publicised incident to date, toxic fumes have been emanating from chemicals that were illegally dumped into the Sungai Kim Kim river in Pasir Gudang. As a result, a huge number of people have needed to seek medical attention, with a said 3,500 people believed to have been affected so far.

The incident has reportedly not affected Singapore yet, however, and a clean-up operation by the Malaysian authorities is currently in progress.

And so… what’s the next step?

Well, if you’ve been planning a getaway trip to Yishun or Punggol for some time, whether it’s for the relatively new Northpoint City or Waterway Point…

I’ll suggest you take a breather from it. Not literally.

P.S. Sorry Yishunites and Punggolians, you guys just gotta take one for the team. Fingers crossed that it won’t spread any more.

P.S.S. Bukit Batok smells like rose, because we’re there.