Fireworks, feathers and 'facai': Year of the Rooster off to crowing start at Chinatown countdown

Crowds ushered in the Year of the Rooster with a crowing start to the Chinese New Year on Friday (Jan 27) night, with festive songs, skits and crowd-pleasing fireworks at the countdown in Chinatown.

People thronged New Bridge Road and Eu Tong Sen Street, where the countdown was being held from 9.30pm till past midnight.

The party featured stage performances including musical numbers by Mediacorp artists Zoe Tay and Tay Ping Hui.

Some roads were closed and buses diverted for the annual party, and security was stepped up this year.

Dr Lily Neo, the adviser to Jalan Besar GRC which the precinct falls under, said in early January that some 40 tonnes of concrete blocks would be used to line roads for the first time during the countdown, to prevent vehicles from entering areas with large crowds.

At midnight, the standing crowd at Chinatown was treated to brilliant fireworks lighting the sky to usher in the new year.

This article was first published on January 28, 2017.
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