PUB cleans up Pang Sua canal foam, monitors water quality

Kimberly Spykerman Channel NewsAsia 13 Nov 12;


The foam drifted to the canal after a warehouse blaze in Upper Bukit Timah Road on Monday night. The Singapore Civil Defence Force said about 40 barrels of detergent-based concentrate were damaged during the fire, causing the detergent to flow out of the warehouse and sparking a mop-up of Pang Sua Canal. (Photo: Thomas Lau)

SINGAPORE: Clean-up work is ongoing at Pang Sua Canal in Choa Chu Kang after the canal and the nearby park areas were hit by foam.

The foam made its way here after the warehouse blaze in Upper Bukit Timah Road on Monday night.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force said the warehouse stored about 70 barrels of detergent-based concentrate, each holding about 200 litres of the detergent.

About 40 barrels were damaged, causing the detergent to flow out of the warehouse and sparking a mop-up of Pang Sua Canal.

The SCDF said the product is bio-degradable and soluble in water.

As a precautionary measure, PUB has stopped pumping water from Sungei Pang Sua until the foam is completely cleared.

PUB assured residents that raw water from Singapore's reservoirs is treated at its waterworks to meet World Health Organisation drinking water quality standards before it is supplied to households.

It is monitoring the water quality.

Member of Parliament for Chua Chu Kang Group Representation Constituency, Mr Alex Yam, assured residents that the foam is non-toxic and is bio-degradable.

He advised residents to be careful along the roads beside the canal as the light foam can drift onto the footpaths and roads.

He said the canal sluice prevented the foam from entering the Pang Sua River, which is at the northern tip of Yew Tee.

The clean-up follows a fire at about 8.50pm on Monday at a single-storey warehouse, about the size of a football field.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said the warehouse was stacked with wood, metal and food products - as high as six metres - causing the place to be smoke-logged and making it difficult for firefighters to get to the affected areas.

At the height of the fire, the SCDF used seven water jets to contain the fire.

The fire was brought under control within two hours.

One firefighter was sent to the National University Hospital for heat exhaustion.

The SCDF is investigating the cause of the blaze.

- CNA/xq/fa

Foam at Pang Sua Canal mostly cleaned up
Kimberly Spykerman Channel NewsAsia 13 Nov 12;


A photo provided by a member of the public showing clumps of white foam in a canal and at a park in Choa Chu Kang. (Photo: Thomas Lau)

SINGAPORE: The huge clouds of foam that engulfed the Pang Sua Canal at Choa Chu Kang on Tuesday morning have been mostly cleaned up, said national water agency PUB.

At about 5pm, PUB said in a Facebook update that the foam, which is non-toxic and is bio-degradable, has been mostly cleared up.

The clean-up work started in the morning after the canal and the nearby park areas were hit by foam.

The foam made its way to the canal after the warehouse blaze in Upper Bukit Timah Road on Monday night.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force said the warehouse stored about 70 barrels of detergent-based concentrate, each holding about 200 litres of the detergent.

About 40 barrels were damaged, causing the detergent to flow out of the warehouse and sparking a mop-up of Pang Sua Canal.

PUB said its officers are still clearing up the remaining foam and it is monitoring the water quality closely.

As a precautionary measure, PUB has stopped pumping water from Sungei Pang Sua until the foam is completely cleared.

PUB assured residents that raw water from Singapore's reservoirs is treated at its waterworks to meet World Health Organisation drinking water quality standards before it is supplied to households.

- CNA/fa

'Clouds' land in Choa Chu Kang
Straits Times 14 Nov 12;

-- ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM

Residents in Choa Chu Kang woke up yesterday morning to the surreal sight of giant fluffy clouds drifting around their estate. They were carried there by gusts of wind from a buildup of detergent foam in a nearby canal.

A warehouse fire on Monday night had damaged 40 barrels of detergent, which flowed into the canal.

Fiery start, foamy end
Warehouse blaze damaged large barrels of detergent, says SCDF
Janice Tai Straits Times 14 Nov 12;

Foam being blown around the Pang Sua Canal (above) by the wind stopped park connector users in their tracks. -- PHOTOS: KEVIN LIM

CHRISTMAS seemed to have come early for some Choa Chu Kang residents yesterday.

Early-morning park users were greeted by snowy swirls of white foam which stretched for more than 2km along Pang Sua Canal from the junction of Upper Bukit Timah Road and Bukit Panjang Road all the way to Stagmont Ring Road.

"It looked like it was snowing. This is the first time in my life I have seen this in the heartland," said park user William Yap, 57.

He was walking along the Pang Sua Park Connector with his wife at about 7am yesterday when he saw the surreal sight.

Initial speculation was that the foam was the fire retardant used by the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), which fought a big warehouse fire on Upper Bukit Timah Road on Monday night.

But the SCDF and national water agency PUB later clarified that the foam was likely to have been caused by run-off from barrels of detergent in the warehouse.

There were about 70 barrels of detergent-based concentrate - about 200 litres each - stored there. About 40 barrels were damaged in the fire, causing the detergent to flow out of the warehouse.

The detergent is bio-degradable and soluble in water.

The SCDF said that only a small amount of foam was used for less than half an hour to put out the fire, so it is unlikely that the amount of foam generated yesterday morning was the result of its fire-fighting efforts.

Strong winds blew the foam from the canal along Woodlands Road onto footpaths and roads. Some pedestrians, worried that the substance may be toxic, were seen dodging the foam.

PUB led the efforts to clean up the foam, with contractors using vacuum tankers to clear the area. It was the first time in recent years that the agency had carried out a foam clean-up in the nation's waterways.

As a precaution, PUB stopped pumping water from Pang Sua Canal that would otherwise be treated for consumption until most of the foam was cleared at around 5pm.

PUB said its officers also monitored the water quality in the canal closely.

It assured residents that raw water from Singapore's reservoirs is treated at its waterworks to meet World Health Organisation drinking water quality standards before it is supplied to households.

Pang Sua Canal runs from Bukit Panjang to Stagmont Ring Road and Choa Chu Kang North, and drains into Kranji Reservoir.

Pang Sua Fishing Deck was also temporarily closed.

Mr Alex Yam, an MP for Chua Chu Kang GRC, said his grassroots leaders went to the affected area in the morning to advise residents to be careful on the roads onto which the foam had drifted.

A canal sluice prevented the foam from entering Sungei Pang Sua, which is at the northern tip of Yew Tee, he added.

Madam Lee Wei Yin, a resident of Yew Mei Green Condominium on Choa Chu Kang North 6, said flecks of the foam were blown to a height of 15 storeys.

"I live on the 15th floor and there were bits of it on my windows. The security guard told me that waves of the foam started expanding and rising when it was heated up by the morning sun," said the real estate agent, 51.

Madam Lee called the police at 11am yesterday, concerned that traffic might have been disrupted by vehicles stopping temporarily at a nearby bus stop, as drivers'views were obstructed bythefoam on the road.

Others were more amused than alarmed. Within hours of the photos of the huge clouds of foam being posted online, creative netizens began parodying the images.

One portrayal showed Buddhist monk Tang Sanzang and his three disciples - Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing - from the Chinese literary classic Journey To The West standing amid clouds of the foam in Choa Chu Kang.

The SCDF is investigating the cause of the blaze.

Kranji Reservoir's water quality okay
It is not affected by recent foam incident, PUB says
Chia Yan Min Straits Times 15 Nov 12;

LABORATORY tests conducted by national water agency PUB have shown that the water quality in Kranji Reservoir has not been affected by the foam incident in Pang Sua Canal.

Two days ago, white foam was seen floating in the canal which drains into the reservoir.

The foam which cropped up along the canal from the junction of Upper Bukit Timah and Bukit Panjang roads to Stagmont Ring Road was a result of a fire at a warehouse along Upper Bukit Timah Road.

The foam was caused by run-off from barrels of detergent-based concentrate in the warehouse.

About 70 barrels - each of about 200 litres in capacity - were stored there. About 40 barrels were damaged in the fire, causing the detergent to flow out of the warehouse.

In a Facebook post yesterday, PUB said it had done tests on water samples and results show the "water quality... is within the normal range".

"PUB would like to assure the public this incident does not affect the water quality in Kranji Reservoir."

The detergent detected in the water by PUB's tests was alkyl polyglucoside surfactant, made from plant-based oils. It "will be readily biodegraded into harmless compounds within a few days".

The agency said raw water in all reservoirs is treated to meet World Health Organisation drinking-water quality guidelines.

Tests are also regularly conducted on water from various sources before it is supplied to the public, as part of PUB's routine monitoring. Parameters tested for include the pH level of the water as well as the amount of dissolved oxygen, phosphorus and nitrates it contains.

A resident of Hazel Park Terrace near Upper Bukit Timah Road, who wanted to be known only as Madam Chan, said she had some concerns about the safety of the drinking water.

Said the 61-year-old retiree: "When I took a look at the canal yesterday morning, there wasn't that much foam. My husband did say that he was worried about the drinking water since the canal drains into the reservoir, but since we have not noticed anything different about how our water tastes, we have just continued as normal."

When The Straits Times visited the warehouse yesterday, a Mr Yong, who said he was the landlord, said it was "all black inside" and there was "nothing to see".