“Irresponsible Neighbour” puts 6 fish tanks in common area, netizen complains

Singapore — A netizen took to social media to highlight a problem in the building where they lives.

One of the other residents decided to put fish tanks in the hallway.

Not only one fish tank, mind you, nor even two or three, but six.

“Irresponsible Neighbour Simply Put 6 Big fish tanks outside at the common area / lobby,” wrote Raven Qiu in a post on the COMPLAINT SINGAPORE Facebook page on Friday morning (Aug 6), a popular page for people to air their grievances. It has been shared over one hundred times.

They uploaded a photo of six aquariums lined up against the wall, in three stacks of two in what did indeed look like a relatively uncluttered common area. 

One commenter wrote that Raven Qiu should send photos to the Town Council so that they can “deal with it.”

Most of the people who shared the post seemed to see the humorous side of the matter, joking that the neighbour who owned the fish tanks had turned “their lobby to little Sea Aquarium” and that the water from the tanks could be used in case a fire breaks out.

However, the Singapore Civil Defence Force takes this type of thing very seriously, especially in HDB estates, particularly because the items people place in common areas could be fire hazards.

The SCDF does allow shoe racks, as they are used “for the sole purpose of keeping shoes, whereby, it would not constitute a substantial fire load.”

Folding or removable clothes racks are also allowed, but permanent ones are not.

And even with shoe racks, only small and low ones are allowed, as a 1.2-meter free space is required to be maintained so that wheelchairs and ambulance crews may have unfettered access at all times.

Everything else—including bulky plants, boxes of items and other combustibles are a technical no-no.

In 2019, the town council had an aquarium that contained nine koi on the front steps of a home in Tampines Street 41 removed, as it had been built on common property.

Whether the same will happen to the six fish tanks of Raven Qiu’s neighbour remains to be seen. /TISG

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