Khaw refers to dead SMRT staff as 'colleagues' and celebrates DTL's milestone with a heavy heart

The following is republished from the Transport Minister, Khaw Boon Wan’s Facebook page.
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Yesterday, Downtown Line (DTL) crossed an important milestone: 150 days without any major service disruption. It achieved the 100-day milestone on 31 Jan, together with Circle Line (CCL). Unfortunately, CCL experienced a disruption and the clock restarted for its next 100-day target. This is the challenge of running a disruption-free rail service, not just here in Singapore, but also in other cities like Hong Kong or Taipei or London. Hence crossing each 100-day, 150-day and 200-day milestone is a timely opportunity to encourage them on towards the next milestone.
Sadly, news came that two SMRT colleagues were killed by a moving train while attending to a problem near Pasir Ris MRT station. We are gathering the details to understand how the accident happened and how the safety procedures could be further strengthened. Meanwhile, our hearts are with the families and will do our best to support and assist them.
At DTL Depot, I took the opportunity to remind all that amidst all the maintenance work to keep our trains running smoothly, they should also take care and adhere to safety regulations at all times. We were there to celebrate DTL’s 150-day milestone but our hearts were heavy.