SINGAPORE – Residents and workers in Newton were treated to a surprising sight on Wednesday (January 17). As seen in a video shared on TikTok, the nearby Bukit Timah canal turned bright blue and was almost indistinguishable from the nearby swimming pools.
Singapore’s national water authority PUB is investigating the incident and told The Straits Times that it had “observed no signs of unusual discharge at the site or further upstream.” There were also no anomalies in water quality downstream of the canal and in the Marina Reservoir.
Residents initially consider the blue tone of the canal to be a festive decoration
The owner of the video, Melvin Lee, told 8World that when he first saw the bright blue colour of the canal between Keng Lee Road and Kampong Java Road, he thought the water had been dyed for a festival or special event.
According to The Straits Times, he also said he did not notice any unusual smell in the area that could be associated with the colour of the water.
The bright blue has now faded and the canal’s water has returned to its usual hue, as shown in a second video Lee uploaded to TikTok on Thursday.
The PUB has reminded businesses in the area that it is illegal to dump substances into public sewers. In addition, under the Sewerage and Drainage Act, businesses must obtain written permission from the PUB before discharging industrial effluent or liquid waste into the sewer system.
Each discharge must meet the specified quality requirements.
Last year, water in a drain leading to Kallang River in Toa Payoh turned blue, and in 2015, water in a canal in Jurong West turned red due to an organic solvent.
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