SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN): Torrential rain across Singapore on Sunday afternoon (April 13) led to flash floods at three locations in the north-east: Yishun Avenue 7, a section of the KPE (slip road to Buangkok East Drive), and Punggol Way (slip road to TPE).
National water agency PUB, in a Facebook post on the same day, said that the flooding at all three locations subsided within an hour, by 3pm.
The heaviest rainfall of around 114mm was recorded in the northern part of the island between 12.55pm and 2.45pm.
This, said PUB, was equivalent to 47 per cent of Singapore’s average monthly rainfall in April and ranked within the top 2 per cent of maximum daily rainfall records since 1978.
The heavy downpour had earlier prompted the agency to also issue flash flood risk alerts for 13 locations, including in Punggol, Yishun, Toa Payoh and Bukit Timah, where the heavy rain resulted in high water levels in drains and canals.
The series of alerts followed a post on its X account at about 1.20pm that warned that heavy rain was expected over many areas of Singapore from 1.30pm to 3pm.
Ong, 48, who wanted to be known by only his surname, told The Straits Times that he was driving his family members home from a prayer session around Tampines at about 2.30pm.
They were heading towards Buangkok Drive via the KPE when, about five minutes into the drive, he noticed the floodwaters around the car getting higher.
Ong stopped briefly to assess the situation, and as the water level rose, he decided to make a U-turn and drive in the opposite direction to avoid the flood.
Netizens also took to social media to share images and videos of the rain and waterlogged areas across the island.
Mohd Hakim Musa, who shared images of a waterlogged carpark in Chong Pang on Facebook, said it was the first time he could recall seeing it flooded in his 12 years of living in the area.
“It’s not that serious, but it brings back memories of my childhood, when my friends and I would play with paper boats and run around in the rain,” he added.
Facebook user Tracy Lim said that road visibility was affected by the rain as she was driving along the TPE.
Meanwhile, TikTok user Sure Bo posted a video showing a slightly flooded walkway and rain-slicked roads in Yishun. One commenter remarked: “Don’t complain, just thank God for what we get, especially since Singapore is safe.”
The Meteorological Service Singapore (MSS) on April 1 said moderate to heavy thundery showers are expected over parts of Singapore in the afternoon on most days of April.
The total rainfall for the first half of April is expected to be above average across most parts of the island, MSS said.
Daily maximum temperatures are likely to range between 33 deg C and 34 deg C on most days, with some days possibly reaching up to 35 deg C. - The Straits Times/ANN
