Historic Sumatra Squall Hits Singapore, Uproots Over 300 Trees

Gusty winds brought about by a Sumatra squall from the Strait of Malacca hit Singapore on Tuesday evening with a speed of 83.2kmh, uprooting more than 300 trees, an unprecedented event in recorded history.

The squall moved fast across the whole island from 7 pm to 8.30 pm, according to media reports on Wednesday. The highest wind gust recorded in Singapore was 144.4 kmh on April 25, 1984.

The Meteorological Service Singapore (MSS) said: ‘More rainfall is likely in the last week of the month, with thundery showers expected on most afternoons. The thundery showers could be widespread and heavy on some of these days.’

Tanya Bedi shot a video of the storm as she walked towards a subway station in Somerset in the city centre when the storm hit. The 25-year-old was initially unfazed when a slight drizzle started at around 7.20 pm, but lost her bearings when the rain turned into a heavy downpour within seconds.

‘I’m the kind of person who is usually embarrassed to run. But in this case, it was so heavy that everyone was running towards the closest shelter, including me,’ The Straits Times quoted Bedi who works in the luxury retail industry.

‘I stayed there for about 20 minutes trying to understand what was going on because I’ve never seen anything like this in Singapore,’ she said.

There were about 30 people stranded at the same shelter, she said. Social media was filled with photos and videos of trees that were uprooted in various areas. The National Parks Board said more than 300 trees were affected in the storm, with most incidents involving snapped branches.

(With inputs from agencies.)