Telok Blangah resident burns incense, uses fan to ward off foul smell from neighbour's unit

For over a year, residents at a Telok Blangah block have been dealing with a foul smell coming from an elderly neighbour's home, with one resorting to using fans and burning incense in the corridor to mask the odour.

Wang (transliteration), 70, who lives on the 11th floor of Block 13 Telok Blangah Crescent, told Shin Min Daily News that she has been a resident for over a decade and always got along with her neighbours. 

She recalled that about a year ago, an elderly woman and her two adult sons, who take turns caring for her, moved into the neighbouring unit, after which the smell of faeces and urine began coming from their home.

The elderly woman, she said, is believed to have urinary incontinence — which may develop an unpleasant odour — causing a strong urine smell to permeate through the flat. 

She added that the smell lingers even when their doors and windows are closed, but becomes even stronger when they are open.

Fans, incense, masks and air fresheners

As Wang can't speak English, she told the Chinese daily that she is unable communicate directly with her neighbours. 

In order to alleviate the odour, she reportedly places a fan outside her door every day to blow the smell away and has also recently started burning incense. 

There are times Wang reportedly turns the fan on from 5am and because it's running all day, she shared that her electricity bill has also gone up. 

Sumati (transliteration), another neighbour who lives next door, said that her family also suffers from the stench and to avoid it, they keep their doors and windows tightly closed. 

However, when the other family opens their doors and windows, the stench hits them regardless, forcing her to sometimes wear a mask to sleep.

Son calls for direct communication with neighbours

Wang revealed that she had previously lodged complaints with the relevant authorities and despite volunteers being sent to investigate the situation, little had changed.

One of the elderly woman's sons told Shin Min Daily News several organisations had contacted them and that some would be coming to help with cleaning in the next few days. 

He said that despite repeated complaints by neighbours, they had never communicated with him directly and hoped they could do so in future. 

He added that he did not send his mother to a nursing home as he and his brother are still able to take care of her. 

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