Wet Monday Turns into Surprise Flooding Show
January 8 started with a greedy rain that had commuters and motorists slipping into a wet, dreary snarl early in the morning. The deluge turned several spots in eastern Singapore into flash‑flood hotspots.
Where the Water Wased In
- Tampines Road (Opp Jalan Teliti)
- Tampines Ave 12 (Opp Tampines Eco Green)
- Arumugam Road
- Sims Ave / Eunos Road 8
- Sims Ave / Tanjong Katong Road
- Jalan Nipah
- Bedok Road / New Upper Changi Road
- Upper Changi Road / Bedok North Ave 4
- Bedok Road / Upper Changi Road East
Some of these places are notorious for getting swamped, especially the stretch around Upper Changi Road that feeds into the Bedok canal. PUB, the water authority, says they’re already working on better drainage to keep these spots from turning into ponds in the future.
What Am I Saying About the Rain?
“Intense” is the word PUB chose to describe Monday’s downpour, which was piled up by the Northeast Monsoon and a Sumatra squall that breezed through the Straits of Malacca right over Singapore. The rain was so bad that the Kim Chuan Road gauge recorded a whopping 118.8 mm between 6:20 am and 10:25 am—half of the city’s typical January monthly rainfall. The flood peak at the gauge was 56 mm per hour between 8 am and 8:30 am.
People on the Frontlines
Social media exploded with photos and videos of the flooding. One clip showed cars thumped in the water while commuters at a bus stop had to improvise by standing on the seats themselves. Another video captured water pouring down the roof of an HDB lift—later explained by a Tampines Town Council spokesperson as the result of a clogged drainage gully.
While it was a tough day for those on the streets, the incident reminded us all that the city’s wiry network of drains and canals can get overwhelmed in a single, fierce rainstorm.
So if you’re planning a trip to the east this week, grab your boots and prep your tsunami kit—just kidding! A little rainproof gear should do the trick.
