Family live in fear of roaches for 16 years with hoarder next door
By Yeo Sam Jo, The Straits Times, 29 Apr 2015
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EVERY night for the past 16 years, Ms Nur'Ashikin Zainol and her family have shut the windows of their Eunos Crescent flat before sleeping, for fear that cockroaches would join them in bed.
By Yeo Sam Jo, The Straits Times, 29 Apr 2015
"Every day, we encounter five to 10 cockroaches. In the night, when you go to the toilet, you will surely kill one or two," said the 33-year-old cake decorator.
Her husband, building maintenance technician Fazlan Sahat, 33, said the pests have even wriggled into his pants before.
"Just the other night, a cockroach nearly crawled into my son's ear," Ms Nur'Ashikin said.
The source of the infestation? A three-room flat next door, occupied by Mr Lim Chin Ting, 74, and his wife, Madam Soh Siew Zhen, 66.
Pest-infested Eunos Crescent flat: Neighbours have been living in fear of roaches for 16 years with hoarder next door....
Posted by The Straits Times on Tuesday, April 28, 2015
A musky, sour stench hung over the couple's flat when The Straits Times visited yesterday.
Stacks of newspapers, clothes, boxes, empty bottles and cans, and even a bicycle wheel lined the walls. The items filled the rooms and kitchen to a chest-high level, and there was only a narrow passage left for walking.
Dozens of cockroaches were crawling around, while dead ones peppered the sticky floor and even the walls.
Dozens of cockroaches were crawling around, while dead ones peppered the sticky floor and even the walls.
But Mr Lim, a drink-stall assistant, said he is not bothered by the grime. "I'm used to it," he said in Mandarin, shrugging.
He said his wife hoards the items, and he sleeps on the living room sofa as there is nowhere else to rest. "If I touch her stuff, she will scold me."
The couple, who have lived there since 1977, are not on speaking terms.
Mr Lim said Madam Soh's habit became much worse about five years ago. "Every day, she brings back two or three bags."
The National Environment Agency, Marine Parade Town Council and Housing Board said in a joint statement yesterday that the unit was inspected on Monday because of a dengue cluster in the neighbourhood. Insecticide was sprayed to kill adult mosquitoes.
The National Environment Agency, Marine Parade Town Council and Housing Board said in a joint statement yesterday that the unit was inspected on Monday because of a dengue cluster in the neighbourhood. Insecticide was sprayed to kill adult mosquitoes.
"The insecticide was also effective against the large population of cockroaches that was present in the flat," the statement said.
It added that the town council cleaned up the common corridor, and would work with HDB and the residents to "ensure that the flat is properly maintained".
Ms Nur'Ashikin posted a video on Facebook of cockroaches swarming the corridor after the spraying was carried out. The video has been viewed more than 270,000 times. "We just want (the couple) to get help. It's a hygiene problem," she said.
But an indignant Madam Soh told The Straits Times in the void deck: "Why can't I keep my things? It's not like I have a lot."
The unemployed woman said she was aware the clutter might pose a problem. "If I want to clear it, I can. But I need my stuff."
Inconsiderate neighbour at blk 19 eunos crescent #06-2937.. Look at what my family have to put up with!!!! Bloody cockcroaches!!!
Posted by Nur'Ashikin Fazlan Zainol on Monday, April 27, 2015
But an indignant Madam Soh told The Straits Times in the void deck: "Why can't I keep my things? It's not like I have a lot."
The unemployed woman said she was aware the clutter might pose a problem. "If I want to clear it, I can. But I need my stuff."
The problem of hoarding has hit the headlines again thanks to a video about a flat in Jalan Eunos infested with...
Posted by The Straits Times on Wednesday, April 29, 2015
More facing 'intolerable' issues
The Straits Times, 29 Apr 2015
FEWER Housing Board residents face inconvenience from neighbours, compared to five years ago.
The Straits Times, 29 Apr 2015
FEWER Housing Board residents face inconvenience from neighbours, compared to five years ago.
But for those who do, more find it "intolerable", according to an HDB survey conducted every five years.
In 2013, 48.1 per cent of residents said they faced some form of nuisance - such as noise or littering - from their neighbours.
This was down slightly from 50.4 per cent in 2008.
But this included 32.1 per cent who found the nuisances intolerable - up from 26.6 per cent before.
The rest found the issues minimal or tolerable.
The most common problem was littering, which was experienced by one in five households. One in 10 found it intolerable.
The most common problem was littering, which was experienced by one in five households. One in 10 found it intolerable.
Noise from neighbours was the second biggest problem, experienced by 17 per cent and found intolerable by 7.7 per cent.
MPs said noise is the most common complaint when neighbourly disputes are brought to them.
Conflicts also arise when residents place belongings in the common corridor, said Holland-Bukit Timah GRC MP Liang Eng Hwa.
He has seen slightly more cases of disputes over the years. "The problem with this kind of thing is not so much the numbers, but that it may take a very long time to resolve them."
Some feuds have gone on for at least a decade, he added.
Their flat at Block 19 Eunos Crescent was the focus of a video that showed hundreds of cockroaches swarming out to the...
Posted by The New Paper on Tuesday, April 28, 2015
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