Man climbs over parapet on 11th floor of Bedok block, gets arrested

A 35-year-old man was arrested under the Mental Health Act on Monday (Jan 22) after climbing over a parapet on the 11th floor of a HDB block in Bedok.

He was brought to safety almost two hours after the police were alerted to the incident.

In an almost two minute clip of the incident uploaded to Facebook, the man was spotted clinging onto the ledge with his lower body suspended in mid-air.

An AsiaOne reader who spotted the man told us he was getting ready for work when he saw the person dangling there. 

An inflatable safety life air pack was seen at the foot of the block.

The police told AsiaOne that they received a call for assistance at Block 517 Bedok North Avenue 2 at around 9.55am.

Upon their arrival, a 35-year-old man was hanging off a corridor ledge.

As it was assessed that the man might pose a danger to himself, officers from the Crisis Negotiation Unit (CNU) and the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) responded to the incident, the police said.

After successful negotiation by CNU officers, the man stepped back onto the corridor and was brought to safety at 11.43am.

He was subsequently apprehended under Section 7(1) of the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) Act 2008, said the police, adding that no injuries were reported.

In response to AsiaOne's queries, SCDF said they were alerted to the incident on Jan 22. Two safety life air packs were deployed, and rescuers from the Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (DART) were also on standby as a precautionary measure.

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lim.kewei@asiaone.com