Man rescues dog stranded in Siglap Canal minutes before tide arrived

The young man was determined not to let anything get in the way of rescuing the stranded dog – even if it meant going down into a canal and walking across it.

Mr Kelvin Loo, who was at the scene on Saturday (Oct 9), recounted the incident to Stomp.

He and his wife were walking their dog across a bridge near Siglap Canal when they heard a “weak dog bark”and noticed a small white dog stranded in the canal.

“There was a father-and-son cyclist team already trying to mount a rescue,” Mr Loo said.

They assessed the canal for an access point to walk down and rescue the dog, and located a staircase leading to the bottom of the canal on the opposite end.

Mr Loo said this meant the rescuer would have to walk across the canal.

“The cyclists and I were hesitant to take the risk and we were contemplating calling a relevant department that would be better equipped to mount the rescue,” he said, adding that it was dark at the time.

At this point, a young man walked past, and after finding out what had happened, he volunteered to mount the rescue.

The young man, later identified as Mike, said: “I can’t let it go, there is an animal involved here,” and sprang into action.

“He left his belongings on the side of the canal and asked my wife to look after them while he attempted to jump into the canal,” said Mr Loo, who then pointed him to the stairs on the other side.

When Mr Loo cautioned Mike about the risks involved, the young man said he was trained in outdoor adventure at Pulau Ubin and was confident he could carry out the rescue.

“Once he reached the stranded dog, he calmed it down by caressing it repeatedly before picking it up,” he said.

“He then carefully walked across the canal and back up through the stairs with the dog in his arms.”

It turned out the dog was partially blind.

By then, a crowd had gathered to watch the rescue operation. A woman among them managed to locate the dog’s owner through her group-buy WhatsApp chat group, and informed the owner of their location.

A young woman cyclist arrived shortly after and identified herself as the owner.

“She was appreciative of us finding her dog,” Mr Loo said.

On hearing that Mike was the hero, the young woman “started tearing up and was so emotionally shaken that she knelt down”.

“Fifteen minutes later, as my wife and I were walking back, the canal filled up with incoming tidal water," said Mr Loo. “The dog would have drowned if Mike had not mounted the rescue in time.”

This article was first published in The New Paper. Permission required for reproduction.