SCDF rescues worker after gondola stalls at Teck Whye HDB block

SINGAPORE - A male worker stranded on a gondola between the eighth and ninth storeys of a Housing Board block was rescued by the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) on Friday.

The worker was stuck for at least 40 minutes on the gondola, a SCDF spokesman said.

The SCDF was alerted at 5.30pm, and firefighters from Bukit Batok Fire Station arrived at Block 104 Teck Whye Lane and assessed the gondola's stability and the condition of the worker from the rooftop.

It is unclear whether the gondola had malfunctioned.

Specialists from SCDF's elite Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (Dart) also responded and set up a lowering system comprising ropes and pulleys.

Two Dart specialists then lowered themselves onto the gondola.

In a Facebook video posted by the SCDF on Friday, one Dart specialist secured himself to the worker using a body harness before both were lowered to the ground.

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/SCDFpage/videos/1702574053461923/[/embed]

SCDF said a paramedic assessed the worker on site. He had no visible injuries.

The worker refused to be taken to hospital.

In November 2021, SCDF rescued a worker from a height of 70m at a construction site in Beach Road.

The worker had injured his leg and could not climb down from the crane to safety.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.