A shopper was injured at The Centrepoint along Orchard Road after an escalator malfunctioned on Thursday in Singapore. Channel NewsAsia quoted the mall's spokesperson as saying on Friday that the Basement 1 escalator broke down when the two shoppers were using it with a stroller.
According to reports, the incident took place at around 2.10 pm. Tran Huu Minh, one of the shoppers, has shared a picture of the incident showing the steps buckling due to the malfunction. Tran said that they heard a sound while coming off the escalator and urged the other shoppers to step off too.
"I screamed at my maid to jump off and luckily she did, if not her leg would have been injured or crushed," the shopper told Channel NewsAsia. She added that the helper still sustained "some minor scratches" and is "very shaken by the incident".
Confirming the injury, the Centrepoint spokesperson said that they are in touch with the shoppers. "We have notified the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) and are working with escalator vendor Otis to investigate the incident. We regret any inconvenience caused and continue to encourage all shoppers with luggage, prams or trolleys to use the lifts instead," the spokesperson added.
On Friday, a BCA spokesperson said that the engineers had inspected the escalator after the incident.
The spokesperson said that the agency will issue a Notice to suspend the escalator in that shopping mall. The escalator owner will have to engage an Authorised Examiner to investigate the incident, recommend rectification works and submit a report to BCA.
"The escalator will only be allowed to resume operation after rectification works are completed to the satisfaction of BCA," the spokesperson told Channel NewsAsia. The authority also added that the agency will also conduct an independent investigation.
This is not the first time in Singapore that a shopper sustained injury from an escalator in a shopping mall. Last month, a four-year-old girl was admitted in the hospital after her foot got stuck in an escalator in White Sands mall.
