SCDF rescues driver trapped in vehicle after accident involving taxi and lorry, 2 taken to hospital

Yong Li Xuan
The Straits Times
May 2, 2023

Two people were taken to hospital after an accident early on Tuesday involving a taxi and a lorry near Suntec City.

The police said they were alerted to the accident at the junction of Nicoll Highway and Raffles Boulevard at about 1am.

A person was trapped in the driver’s seat of a vehicle and had to be extricated using hydraulic rescue equipment, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said.

A 56-year-old male taxi driver, who was unconscious, and a 47-year-old male lorry driver, who was conscious, were taken to Singapore General Hospital.

Videos of the aftermath of the accident circulating on social media and in online chat groups show SCDF officers assessing a lorry which had tipped over onto its right side next to an Esplanade MRT station exit.

The lorry is on the pavement and seems to have hit a traffic light pole, which is leaning away from the lorry.

A short distance away, on Nicoll Highway, a ComfortDelGro taxi is surrounded by SCDF officers.

The taxi has a shattered rear windscreen, and both the front and rear of the vehicle are damaged.

Ms Tammy Tan, ComfortDelGro’s group chief corporate affairs officer, confirmed that there were no passengers on board when the accident occurred.

She said: “We are already in touch with our cabby’s family and will assist them the best we can.”

Investigations are under way, police said.