A 39-year-old woman was wounded by a dislodged metal panel of SMRT escalator at City Hall MRT Station on Friday (14 September) afternoon.
Ms Ong Sook Ling and her husband, Mr Kevin Ong, were heading back to their workplaces after having lunch together at Raffles City Shopping Centre.
The couple, who are both working in the financial industry, were going down an escalator, standing side-by-side.
Mr Ong said that he saw a metal panel of the escalator flip open. A moment later, his wife let out a loud scream.
“I heard a metal screeching sound and the next thing I know, my wife was pinned down by the panel, and the escalator kept moving,” he said.
The 40-year-old man then told Today that he took the panel and placed it by the side of the escalator so that others would not get hurt after they stepped off the escalator.
He said that his wife the sharp edges of the panel had cut through her left shin, recalling, “My wife felt a stinging pain and hobbled to the side and sat down on the floor. It was only when she looked at the injury that she realised it was much worse than she thought.”
He then said that when he looked at the wound, he could see er bone and blood oozing out.
“I was calming her down while she was applying pressure to stem the bleeding,” he added.
Some of the customers attended to them, including a woma who claimed that she was a trained nurse.
The woman then asked SMRT staff to retrieve a first-aid kit and later bandaged Ms Ong’s leg.
“We were lucky that the female commuter sprang into action. We didn’t get the chance to find out her name and we really want to thank her,” said Mr Ong.
Mrs Ong were then taken to Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital, where the doctor told the couple that her leg wound was about 8 cm long and about 3 to 4 cm deep and said that she needed to go for a surgery.
That afternoon, Mrs Ong went into a surgery for two hours and was given eight days of hospitalisation leave.
MRT’s vice-president of corporate communications Margaret Teo told Today that on Sunday at around 1.40pm that day, a side panel on one of its down riding escalators at City Hall MRT station had dislodged, injuring two commuters who were on the escalator.
“Our station staff provided first aid to the commuters, one of whom was conveyed to hospital for further treatment. Our care team has reached out to the commuter through her family member to provide assistance as best as we can. We are very sorry for the accident and wish the commuter a speedy recovery,” she said.
However, no further details were given about the other injured commuter.
Ms Teo stated that after repairs and thorough checks were conducted, the escalator was put back into service that same evening, adding that the incident is currently being investigated.
According to Mr Ong, he received a call from an SMRT employee at about 9 pm on Saturday, asking about his wife’s condition.
The subject of hospital expenses was raised.
The employee then told Mr Ong to submit all the medical invoices and that SMRT will review them accordingly, as the company is still investigating the incident.
“I emphasised to the employee that this could happen to a child and we wouldn’t dare to imagine the extent of the injury it will have on a child,” said Mr Ong.
