By Aqil Haziq Mahmud | CNA | Singapore |
SINGAPORE: On Jan 29, 1983, Mr Jagjit Singh and six family members had just spent a fun-filled day in Sentosa. Dusk was setting, and they were about to return to Mount Faber on the mainland, where Mr Singh’s godparents had parked their car.
At the time, the only ways to get to and from Sentosa were by ferry or cable car. The latter would take them straight to Mount Faber. Mr Singh, then an eight-year-old boy, waited with his family at the Carlton Hill station on Sentosa.
The first cable car that rolled in at about 6pm was red and numbered 26. Mr Singh still remembers vividly every detail from that fateful day – and he had a gnawing feeling getting into it.
“My favourite colour happens to be blue, and I just didn’t feel comfortable with taking the red cable car that was coming first,” he told CNA.
“So I told my godparents, ‘Can we just take the blue one?’ They said no, because we were rushing to go to a temple. I hope they had listened to me, because by the time the blue one came, I felt like the accident would have happened (before we could board).”
Mr Singh’s cable car was one of 15 cars travelling between Sentosa and the mainland when the derrick of oil drilling vessel Eniwetok struck the ropeway at 6.06pm as it was being towed out to open sea.
The impact dislodged two cars, plunging them into the water 55m below. One of the cars was empty, but five passengers in the other car were killed.
Mr Singh’s car swung so violently, making at least one somersault, that its doors gave way, flinging out three of its seven passengers. Mr Singh’s godfather and grandmother died, but the third passenger – his cousin, who was just two years old – miraculously survived.
Mr Singh saw everything. The now 47-year-old has been diagnosed with anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
“It plays in my head every single day. There’s not one day I can say that passes without me thinking about the incident, or it coming back as flashbacks,” he said of the incident.
“I get flashbacks every single day. There are a lot of factors that trigger these emotions. Sometimes they are related to scenic places. If I happen to pass by the cable car tower, while going on the bridge to Sentosa, my head will always turn to the right.
“When I’m coming out I will turn to the left. It’s automatically like second nature. You just turn to see the spot where the accident happened.”
Read the full story, entitled ’40 years after Sentosa cable car accident, survivor still struggles with trauma’, CNA, 19 Jan 2023), here
ASIA SAMACHAR is an online newspaper for Sikhs / Punjabis in Southeast Asia and beyond. When you leave a comment at the bottom of this article, it takes time to appear as it is moderated by human being. Unless it is offensive or libelous, it should appear. You can also comment at Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can reach us via WhatsApp +6017-335-1399 or email: asia.samachar@gmail.com. For obituary announcements, click here.
