Free masks and hand sanitizer in Punggol lift provided by civic minded residents

Singapore—Amid the fear and panic felt by many as the numbers of those affected by the Wuhan coronavirus continues to climb, it’s refreshing to see that some people are choosing kindness and generosity as one way to fight the disease.

And the best thing is that this kindness has actually spread from one person to another. One act of kindness inspires others to follow suit.

In a flat in Punggol, one person started the ball of kindness rolling by putting a bottle of hand sanitizer and some masks in the lift. After this unexpected blessing, and even in the midst of a shortage of supply of masks, complete with long queues and surging prices, other residents of 267B Punggol Field simply continued to “pay it forward.”

Photos posted on the Facebook page Collike on Monday (Feb 3) show hygiene supplies such as hand sanitizer, N95 and surgical masks, alcohol swabs, children’s masks, and the like affixed to the walls and railings of the lift. Accompanying them were signs such as “Press Me. Use what you need,” (on the hand sanitizer), “Wear Me. Pls take ONE  if you need (on the surgical masks), and “Use in highly contagious places” (for the N95 masks).

Some of the items say who the donor is from, but most are anonymous.

The netizen who posted on Collike wrote, “This is a house full of human feelings. Wuhan virus is dying! Neighbourhood Love should be spread throughout Singapore.”

He or she also wrote that they hoped that “Singapore Kindness can spread faster than the Wuhan virus.”

Other netizens have lauded the heartwarming kindness demonstrated by the residents, with one woman writing, “Punggol has kind neighbors everywhere.”

Another echoed this by showing a similar photo from 665C Punggol Drive.

And it seems that kindness is not in short supply in Singapore. One photo that someone  shared showed that they would start distributing 4-layer surgical masks for free to the elderly starting from February 3 (Monday).

Many called it a triumph of the kampung spirit.

At least one individual seemed to be inspired to do likewise in the lift in his building.

On the kindness shown in 267B Punggol Field, one netizen wrote, “There are always more good people than bad ones to make this a wonderful world for all.”

Others praised the initiative as it would be a big help for those who have a hard time getting hygiene supplies.

One comment expressed the wish that all Singaporeans would behave this way, “instead of being kiasi and kiasu.”

However, some netizens have been cynical, wondering how long this kind of kindness initiative will last.

But most of the comments have been appreciative of the Punggol residents responsible for the free supplies.

Read related: Morning brief: Wuhan coronavirus updates for Feb 4, 2020

Morning brief: Wuhan coronavirus updates for Feb 4, 2020