‘My knees hurt so much’: Elevator renovation leaves residents climbing stairs in Yishun HDB flat, sparking pain complaint

SINGAPORE: Elevators are very helpful for residents, especially the elderly, who live in upper units in HDB flats. However, this is not the case for some residents who live in Yishun because one of the elevators in their flat has been out of service for two weeks. 

As reported by Shin Min Daily News, a 75-year-old resident shared that usually, there are three elevators working in their HDB block. Unfortunately, the elevator located in Block B, where the complainant lives, has been closed due to renovation since the 13th of this month. A notice posted at the elevator entrance claimed that the elevator is set to be completed by the 7th of next month.

The renovation has been causing great inconvenience to the residents, and many declared that the construction arrangements are poorly made. “Only the corridors on the sixth and eleventh floors of the entire HDB block lead to the other two elevators. Apart from these two floors, residents on other floors have to climb the stairs first and then transfer to the elevators. Among them, residents on the third, fourth, eighth and ninth floors are most affected, as they have to walk two or three floors and cross the corridor to reach the elevators on the other side,” the resident claimed. 

With this, he has to go up and down the stairs every single day, which is challenging given that he is old and gets out of breath easily. More residents agreed that using the stairs is troublesome. Another resident, a 70-year-old female living on the fourth floor, remarked that her knees have been hurting so badly that she needed to take medication to relieve the pain. 

“I used to go out two or three times a day, but now I only go out once,” the resident further added. 

Given all these complaints, the residents hope that relevant authorities will review the project arrangements and minimise its impact on the daily lives of the people. 

Due to this, the town council addressed the situation and said that the construction period will be shortened, and the elevator service will resume on the 28th of this month. 

In similar news related to HDB complaints, there was a report where residents of an HDB flat located in Toa Payoh complained that a male resident has been keeping cats in his three-room unit and allowing them to roam freely and defecate in the common corridor.

A resident admitted: “One of the affected residents was often away from home, and the cat would poop there and no one would clean it up, so it got smellier and smellier.”

Read more about the news story here.