Two boys locked out by electronic HDB door during power outage climb through window, end up trapped on eaves

SINGAPORE: A 13-year-old boy and his friend found themselves in a frightening situation after climbing through a stairwell window at an HDB block to get home. The pair became trapped on the eaves between the second and third floors and needed authorities to rescue them.

The incident happened at an HDB block in Yishun, according to Shin Min Daily News. Case details revealed that the house uses an electronic door lock, and at that time, the building was out of power. With this, the two young men thought of climbing out from the outer stairwell and entered the house through the window. Unfortunately, they ended up being trapped between the floors. 

A number of civil defence personnel then gathered at the scene and set up a long ladder to rescue the victims. One civil defence worker climbed the ladder and attempted the rescue, as many residents watched and police officers were stationed downstairs. 

Fortunately, no one was injured in the incident. The owner of the unit then changed the door locks at home after the incident. 

When contacted, the authorities confirmed that they had received a distress call at around 12:50 p.m. on Monday, Sep 5. The authorities successfully led the people to safety. 

In other related news about HDB incidents, a fire incident happened in a four-room unit on the seventh floor of an HDB building located at Ang Mo Kio Avenue 4. 

It was suspected to have started due to an automatic mahjong table. The owner shared that because of the incident, their master bedroom and living room were severely damaged, and the estimated renovation period for their unit is said to be four months. 

The family is hoping to move back before the Chinese New Year celebration, and they can only stay in temporary accommodation arranged by the Housing Development Board for now. 

Read more about the news story here.