Saluting our dedicated officers on the ground!
By: Kamal Hakim
ASP Shasha (S): I remembered a light drizzle had just stopped on the night of 30 July 2021. Poh and I were driving around the Woodlands industrial area when we noticed a man in a Grab rider uniform standing at the roadside pavement. He appeared to be in pain and kept pointing to his ribcage area. We decided to quickly park our car and check on him. Strangely, he couldn’t seem to respond properly to our questions. That’s when we learned he had a hearing disability.
SSS Poh (P): We ended up communicating by typing out text messages on the phone. I remember the first thing I typed was “are you injured?” We learned that he was cycling while delivering food, but lost control and fell. He had some abrasions on his elbows and legs, so we asked him to lie down as we administered some light first aid.
S: Poh is the kind of officer who likes to ‘bao ka liao’ (does everything) :) We also made a check with the Police Operations Command Centre (POCC) to review the footage of the nearby Police Camera (PolCam) to ensure that he wasn’t a victim of any hit-and-run accident.
P: We were concerned that he might have suffered internal injuries, so we called for an ambulance. The man then gestured towards his bag to say that he still had to complete his food delivery order! I gave a call to Grab and explained to them about the situation. I also gave a call to the man’s next-of-kin and assured them that he’s safe and will be brought to the nearby hospital.
S: Then we also realised - what do we do with his bicycle and the food delivery? So, we kept the bicycle safely locked and left a note to ensure that it wouldn’t be taken away. Unfortunately, we had to dispose of the food order. The ambulance soon came. After explaining to the paramedics, we bade him a safe farewell.
P: A few days later, we learned that the man had turned up at the NPC to pass us a handwritten note personally addressed to SC/CPL Xie Sibin, who had also assisted us in attending to the man that day. It was quite heartwarming. His note read:
“Hi, offer (officer): Xie Sibin
Yesterday 29/07/2021, Grabfood bicycle help save resurse (resource), Blk 870 WDL Ave 9 way.
Thank you ok.”
S: It was nice and I’m thankful for having a good team. Though I have to say that we don’t do this just because we’re on duty. When we see someone in need, in pain or at loss it’s only human for us to offer help!
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