FLOOD!
Some of you must have seen the papers that went on about how the stupid rain hit some areas on our island, and was bad enough to warrant mention in page 1 of the Home section in the Strait Times.
Well here at BBHQ-yes we're still at work-on unfortunately low-lying Ganges Ave (opp Great World City), we were hit badly. Poor Song Leng had to miss his 4:30 dental appointment because the high water levels didn't let him move out of HQ. Let us lower our head and mourn for a single minute:
Time's up.
To claim insurance, we at BBHQ were maddeningly enthusiastic about pictures!
I think I'll give one right now.
This was the rear block of the 3 main terrace blocks that made up the campus. It's the lowest point in the whole place. Some Canoes would have come in handy. Helicopters also not entirely out of the question.
First, you need to see a dry picture of our Campus.
The lobby is flanked by the 2 offices. I was working in the one on the left.
This is the lobby after the water hit.
The prelude was the SGB warehouse that was just a temporal tent set up in the grassy field between block 1 and 2. The roof couldn't take the huge amounts of water and started pouring.
Then we got the cameras out and started snapping.
This was the point where everyone got really excited and Raj, most left, started yelling to take picture.
This was the point where everyone got really excited and Raj, most left, started yelling to take picture.
The HQ Girls posing before the rain got really really heavy.
Here's most of HQ's staff.
Here's Ms Ang Hui Leng trying to get to her car and get it out of the way before the water killed the engine.
(below)Mr. Tan Sern Khoon dunno doing what. I think he was trying to survey the situation outside the gates of HQ. There was only one word to describe it: bad.
The vans during and after the rain.
The following are elsewhere around HQ.
This is just outside our office.
This was actually a raised podium. The step you see is actually the second step up. The water covered the first step.
(below) This actually is a dormitory block. The sea you see is actually a field..
This is the canteen and the dormitory.
This is the same field but from another angle.
This guy is Benjamin. He and his group have been living in the dorms since I started work on Monday. The flood forced them out. They've relocated. Far away from HQ I bet.
This is the field behind the dorm Benjamin is at. Using the size of the goalpost, guess how bad was it there?
The sequence below is inside our office!
This is on carpeted flooring hor.
Floating Dustbins!
This is the reception area. We tried to rescue all the expensive stocks of printer toner and photocopying materials. See my orange nalgene bag and my brooks running shoes? Casualties.
I was like at my desk thinking that how cool that it was flooding outside. Then I realised that water was seeping in, and I started grabbing all the files and important forms and tossing them onto higher ground.
First was the water level rising. Then I was rejoicing that I had both a nice experience and the sounds of My Chemical Romance playing in the background.
Then the power all over HQ went out, and we had no electricity-no air-con, no computer, no telephone and worst of all, no light!
It reminded me of the corridors of the dying titanic. Water everywhere.
So we picked ourselves up in the darkness. Not complete, but impeding.
Ses and Melissa gushing over the rising water levels. Over the carpetted floor, mind!
(below) This is the BB shop. We rushed to save the new stock of Deuter bags that just arrived on Monday.
The Madams clearing up the water from the office floor. I bought all the colourful brooms. I have taste.
We then started to clean up the place as best after most of the water has receded.
This is yours truly doing my bit to clear up the room with the photocopying machine and the fax machine and the shredder. The shredder is on the chair on my right. I proudly declare that I was the hero that saved it from the evil waters.
And I think I look massive. The workouts are proving to be beneficial.
The next few pictures are today, which is the next day lah. We came back to the office to salvage whatever we could to establish a new workstation at another room that is not badly hit. The earth don't stop spinning. And we have a mega Opening Ceremony for the Sharity Gift Box on Friday! So we needed to get things in order.
So we fished out the things we needed and transported the computers that were untainted to the Fraser Hall.
Only 3 CPUs were damaged. Boss', Raj's and Rosalind's. Haha. Boss!
But Mr. Desmond Koh was a cool guy. And he declared that everyone come in casual clean up clothes the next day.
Transportation! Unglam shot, cos Ms Catherine Chia caught me off guard with her camera.
This is the hallway we saw in the morning. The damage restoration company came and left the dryers to work overnight.
This would otherwise be my workplace, if not for the flood. Rosalind is handing me the things I needed to bring over. Rosalind is real sweet. Helps me out a lot.
This is the room that we chose and everyone is setting up the computers. It got wet too and it stinks. Uncle Raj was like spraying the air-freshener every where.
This is Andrew putting together Julie's com. He's newer than me by 1 day and he's working with the SGB side, which needs all the people they can get.
I like this pic. It's cool and it shows the refugee quality about our relocation. It's also quite neat what.
This is the room, almost done. We struggled to hook up all the computers with internet and to have all the servers be in connection. We also restablished our phone lines, thanks to Mr. Alex Poh and Raj. The nearest com with the blue screen is my work station!
The power would short out at least 3 more times before the end of the day.
What did I learn? How to read God's subtle signs.
Sign No. 1) The day before, I was just browsing through the pictures of the previous flooding earlier the year in January. Found it for no reason and was looking through it with Rosalind.
Sign No. 2) Woke up with the spontaneous urge to pack slippers and torch which I dismissed because they didn't seem necessary. Realised my folly during the wetness and blackout.
Sign No. 3) Reading the free newspaper thrust at me while I was going to work at the MRT. Specifically saw the weather forecast all over Singapore. And I also made the sudden effort to check out the weather at my workplace. Heavy rain with thunderstorm.
What did this flood cost me?
- My Brooks running shoes.
- Possibly 1 week of missing gym and running.
- A missed adventure at the dentist's.
...It was a massive effort to put this all up. Thank God it's done up.
