Tragic accident at Tampinese - pls wear cycling helmets!

[concern2]

buds:

....

...
\"Baby, it's me. Sorry, could you ring the music school to cancel today's lesson? We met up with an accident.\"

My head spun quite suddenly and I quickly sat down. My tummy ached from the news over the phone. I wanted to ask so many questions but didn't know which I should ask first. But hubs seemed to know what was on my mind. He immediately declared that both were safe but on the way to the hospital to get their injuries checked. \"The bike's a wreck.\" Hubs said. My heart sank. \"Is DD1 okay?\" I asked while I held my breath in. \"Yes.\" I heaved a long sigh. I rang my Daddie to ask if he finished work and that I needed him.

Once we met up I saw DD1, she was in a wheelchair... her face all dirty and her arms and legs were a little bloody. My heart cried out inside but I didn't show it. I hugged her and she kept saying, \"I was so scared, mom. I was so scared.\"

We all sat close to one another and listened as hubs related the ordeal that just happened. It happened so fast. In mere minutes but the details depicted every second of what they just went through. A slow-mo re-cap you may call it.

They were almost reaching the traffic light junction and he already dropped gear... the bike already slowly and gradually getting ready to halt nearing the line. Out from nowhere, a big lorry was nearing closer and closer to the side of the bike where their right calves were. Hubs moved further left to avoid a swipe but the lorry didn't seem to be slowing down at all. It kept moving into the left. DD1 started to scream and hubs turned around and shouted for the driver to stop but the driver didn't even notice. The lorry's windows were up. Hubs honked the horn together with a few other cars as well. Yes, drivers from other lanes paid attention. The driver still didn't slow down. As the lorry started to move in on them, DD1 screamed, \"Daddy!!!\" The next moment, hubs just let go of the motorbike sending it a few metres away in front of them as both he and DD1 flew to the side of the road. Everything went fade to black for a few seconds for hubs. Apparently, the lorry driver then abruptly jammed his brakes. Hubs quickly got up from the ground worried about our daughter. He hurried over to her. She seemed to have blacked out for awhile and it took some light nudges to rouse her. DD1 screamed again when her eyes opened. She said, \"It's painful daddy. Very painful.\" She sobbed loudly... shaken... and in pain.

A few drivers stopped behind the lorry to render help and everyone seemed to be silently praying that no one was seriously hurt. Hubs ignored the throbbing pain he had and gently instructed DD1 to move her limbs slowly to make sure nothing was broken or fractured. He prayed that the blood streaked on DD1 was superficial. All the other drivers offered to help with something. One moved the flung motorbike. Another carried DD1 to a safer side of the road. Another helped to direct the traffic.

Yes, the first instinct was to punch the lorry driver as he parked at the side and came out to see if hubs and DD1 were ok. It took every inch of hubs to hold everything in him especially after he shouted, \"What the **** were you doing? Can you even see where you are going?\" ..... and the response he received was, \"Err.. sorry.. sorry.. wo bu dong.. wo bu hui jiang Engrish.. err.. ni gen wo lao ban shuo.. sorry..\" Yes. It was a China driver. Hubs really really held it in him I tell you.. really did.. Not that he was xenophobic but majority of his experiences with the foreign talents had been quite bad. Yes. He was angry. Very very angry.

He was angrier when the boss translated over the phone that the driver was a little sleepy and was out delivering new furniture for his company for the new year. He pleaded with hubs to settle. No cops. He will foot everything. From medical, transportation claim, to any income loss due to any absence from work. He pleaded that he has a family with mouths to feed and that it was the new year. He won't scrimp and delay any payment. He gave hubs his company details and hubs kept the driver's ID till they officially met up. The driver too was pretty shook up and apologetic. He looked guilty looking at DD1 wailing at the side of the road. DD1 refused to even look his way.

After consultation, while waiting for treatment and prescription for minor injuries DD1 shared...

DD1 : Mom, I was so scared I couldn't speak. But when I calmed down, I remembered about the motorbike. I told daddy I was sorry that his motorbike was a wreck because of me, because he had to send me. He really just flung his bike. We were both like in the air for a short while. It was scary. But daddy said, don't worry about the bike.

His exact words were, \"Don't worry about the bike. As long as you're okay. The bike is not important.\"

I felt sad when he said that, mom.

Me : Why?

DD1 : I was rude and mean to him. I didn't even wanna practice playing the violin properly cos I didn't feel like it. But he said everything was not important as long as I was ok. Made me feel so guilty. Why did he say that?

Me : Because he's your dad. Parents always forgive their children. Even though they don't say it all the time.

I could feel tears glistening already by then..

DD1 : I told daddy, it must be expensive to fix and we don't have the money... and how was he going to go to work.. Again he said don't worry, it's not important. As long as I was ok. He said, motorbike is not a living thing but I was his life. Motorbike can repair or get another. Then, he asked me if he could buy another daughter from the shop. Silly daddy, of course cannot. But all this time I thought he was angry with me because I didn't listen.. I thought he didn't love me.

Me : All parents love their children, sweetie.. even though they don't show it all the time.

Back at home.. with packed food for dinner so I didn't have to fuss abt cooking and clearing, all of us ate a quiet meal that evening. As I cleared up the rubbish, I gestured hubs to put DD1 to bed. I advised him to give her some closure to put her at ease and also loosen her up from that mini scare.

I saw them in embrace and as he lightly touched her hair running through it gently putting it in place, I heard him tell her..

\"Nothing is ever more important than my children. That is why I work so hard, so we can at least try to live a comfortable life. Now with another baby coming along, I have to work doubly hard. I love all of you more than anything. I am sorry the accident frightened you. It was my fault. I should've been more careful. I shouldn't even have gotten you on the bike in the first place. I am sorry.\"

DD1 just nodded, her cheeks streaming with tears. Before hubs left the room, he kissed her forehead gently and whispered to her I love you and have a good rest.

The tragic crash in Tampines sparked a dejavu for me and my family. Hence this long post.

This new year, I encourage you to acknowledge your love for your family.. to forgive.. out with the old (bad history) and embrace the new.. well it is \"NEW\" Year ain't it? May all years of bad history be buried so that new history can be made.

I've shared this before. Life is short. Live life to its fullest.
Live like everyday is your last. http://www.kiasuparents.com/kiasu/content/make-everyday-count

~ For the family of the two innocent boys from the tragedy, my heart, my thoughts and my prayers are with you... As you ache and pine for the loss of your sons, I am aching with you. I am praying with you. Your pain today only serves to remind me to love my family even more. ~

Cherish what we have now and not only when we have lost it. Stay safe everyone. Never take safety for granted whether you are a driver or a pedestrian.. Have a blessed new year celebration and bask in the bliss of being around your families.. for there are others who are without.

Thanks for sharing your story, Buds. Couldn't stop my tears. There is nothing more important then our kids, and they are our lives. So true.

[kwcllf]

After I read this on Yahoo!, it really made me teared.


\"Pastor Flora Chew described how loving and close the family had been. She said that she had once asked Nigel why he was so tired every weekend and he had confessed that he would wait up till midnight for his father to come home from work so that he could see him before he slept\".

[Desserts]

Thanks for sharing , buds, it sent tears to my eyes while reading your account. Hope all s well with your dh and dd now. We also had a minor collision last year and the all of us were traumatized… It was scary.dh had wanted to get a scooter to work too, I told him not to. The bigger vehicles really have no regards of others while on the roads. Hope the L T A really does something to penalize them for driving so fast.

As I read how the mother of the two boys cried inconsolably, Tears just welled up. Recovery will take a long time for them. Let’s continue to pray for them to have strength to face each day.

And also perhaps with the stressful lifestyle in Singapore, and everyone wants to meet deadlines, from taxis, trucks, etc… there s no wonder drivers are impatient. In aus, people seem to be more gracious to let you go first on the roads, you hardly can hear honks.

[MMM]

concern2:

I haven't come across any of such photos and don't really know of their existence until I saw PM's message. Makes me wonder what his real intention was - to express sympathy, or to criticize the netizens. That said, I disapprove of such circulations, if they do exist.

:offtopic:

I bought the chinese newspapers last night to read more about the accident. Got my kids to read it. Re-emphasized on importance of safety, gave them a hug and told them how sad we will be to lose them. So pls stay safe. I also read about the 12 year old boy which is also :gloomy:

However something caught my attention. It was the pictures of Baey and TSL. They were featured in both those case. Probably to show their involvement as MPs. I silently wondered to myself if that will be the trend going forward to show how engage our MPs are with our daily lives.

[schweppes]

buds:

Cherish what we have now and not only when we have lost it. Stay safe everyone. Never take safety for granted whether you are a driver or a pedestrian.. Have a blessed new year celebration and bask in the bliss of being around your families.. for there are others who are without.

Thanks for sharing, Buds. It made me tear. Hope your girl is less traumatized by the incident now. :hugs:

[Dora1]

OK dun flame me, but I’m going to share it from a driver’s point of view. I dunno what happened in this particular case, who is at fault etc. However I just want to say that it is very stressful to drive on SG roads nowadays, have to look out for motorbikes who weave in and out of traffic, roadworks that pop up all over SG, jaywalkers, tailgaters, traffic jams in roads big and small, and the list goes on. Not to mention that everyone is trying to beat the time, beat the ERP timing, get to school on time, make deliveries on time, rush to child care before closing if not will kenna fine, etc etc. We cannot expect drivers to be on their 100% concentration ALL the time. Therefore, for pedestrains and cyclist, and other drivers, be more Kiasi. Always have ample buffer, dun cut it so close and take the chance and ASSUME the driver can see you. A lot of times, they can’t… When an accident happen, even if the court can jail the driver etc, it’s too late… It’s not going to bring back their lives… only you can protect your own lives…

Stay safe everyone… and be Kiasi

[janet88]

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/brothers-killed-in-tampines-horror-crash--%E2%80%98two-boys-full-of-love--life-and-laughter%E2%80%99--151735970.html


“We would like to ask people to please stop posting or sharing photos of Nigel and Donovan’s bodies. Their mother really cannot take it – we don’t want her to accidentally see it or find it. They were just a hardworking, normal, happy family, very simple and contented. The accident has destroyed their lives – I hope you can all understand where we are coming from,” said the male relative, who declined to be named.

[cool_hi]

I agree with Dora1…prevention is better than cure…I do not trust my maid to send/walk/take bus to send my kids to school…coz saw so many cases of near-knock down cases of maids bring kids to school!

& I will never allow my kids to ride bicycle on the roads!
& to be fair to drivers,cyclists in S’pore Ned to be taught on proper cycling eg,they are supposed to walk across traffic light with the bicycle,NOT cycle across? Correct me if I am wrong…

My hubby almost knock down a teenager who cycled at high speed across a traffic light late night when lighting was bad…& traffics light was green for my hubby!!within 1-2 sec,the boy just cycled across at high speed!!i screamed then hubby shouted at me asking why?!then he saw the boy.,if hubby drove off at the moment light turn green for him,that will b another tragedy!! &. Nightmares for us!! So who is at fault?!

[MintyMin]

So heartwrenching to read the news.. don't even dare to see any photos of it.. :sad:


May they rest in peace.

[kwcllf]

Dora1:

OK dun flame me, but I'm going to share it from a driver's point of view. I dunno what happened in this particular case, who is at fault etc. However I just want to say that it is very stressful to drive on SG roads nowadays, have to look out for motorbikes who weave in and out of traffic, roadworks that pop up all over SG, jaywalkers, tailgaters, traffic jams in roads big and small, and the list goes on. Not to mention that everyone is trying to beat the time, beat the ERP timing, get to school on time, make deliveries on time, rush to child care before closing if not will kenna fine, etc etc. We cannot expect drivers to be on their 100% concentration ALL the time. Therefore, for pedestrains and cyclist, and other drivers, be more Kiasi. Always have ample buffer, dun cut it so close and take the chance and ASSUME the driver can see you. A lot of times, they can't... When an accident happen, even if the court can jail the driver etc, it's too late.... It's not going to bring back their lives.... only you can protect your own lives....

Stay safe everyone.... and be Kiasi

Yeah.......must also add. My DS must ensure he leaves home \"joon joon\" for school. If not, will kena detention if late.

But I always told him, \"Better be late than Never\".