Protect Our Homes: Fire Safety Tips
Protect Our Homes: Fire Safety Tips Prevention is the best defence when it comes to avoiding accidents or fires. Let’s review some safety precautions you should observe both at home and in common spaces. In your home Don’t overload electrical points Don’t use faulty electrical appliances, wiring or insulators Use electrical and plugs that bear the SAFETY mark Never charge batteries or devices such as power banks or personal mobility devices overnight or leave them to charge unattended Never leave cooking unattended Don’t keep more than 1 LPG cylinder as spare Keep fire starter materials such as matches away from children Keep flammable materials (e.g. clothes, curtains) away from an open flame Don’t smoke in bed In common areas Keep corridors, staircases and staircase landings free of clutter Don’t place anything near the fire hoses as that may hamper fire rescue efforts Always extinguish matches and cigarette butts completely before disposal What to do in case of fire Stay calm and do not panic Alert others of the fire by shouting Dial 995 for the SCDF Turn off the gas mains if you can reach them Activate the nearest fire alarm Fight the fire only if you are able to do so without endangering yourself or others. According to the SCDF, extinguish fires by: Using water on burning papers, wood, and fabrics but never on flammable liquids such as oil as this will cause the fire to spread Using a suitable fire extinguisher Using a hose reel If possible, close the door of the affected area to contain the fire Evacuate everyone from the room or area without endangering yourself Evacuate the building in a safe and orderly manner via the stairs; do not use the lift Do not return to the building until the authorities say you can do so Fire safety equipment to have at home All new public and private homes built since June 2018 are required to have home fire alarm devices. Although they are not mandatory for existing homes, SCDF recommends every household to install these smoke or heat detectors as they provide early warning of a fire by sounding an alarm. Check here for SCDF’s guide on such devices. A dry powder fire extinguisher is also good to have at home, says the SCDF, even if it is not required by law. Download a copy of the latest Civil Defence Emergency Handbook to get the most updated tips on how to deal with all kinds of emergencies, from fires to natural disasters. Back
Decommission of iTown App
Decommission of iTown App Back
CCK Town Loves SG: Our Top 3 Winners
CCK Town Loves SG: Our Top 3 Winners CCK Town residents love SG in plenty of ways! Residents from all walks of life wore their hearts on their sleeves as they marked our beloved Little Red Dot’s 57th National Day! We spoke to the winners of the top three entries about why they love National Day and how they made their entries shine. The Neo family in their matching outfits and SG57 decoration clinched the top prize of a HP Envy printer. United for SG – The Neos (from left): Kok Keong, Jia Quan, Jia Ying, Chakriya and Jia Fu are residents of Chua Chu Kang estate. Chakriya said her family loves decorating their home for various festivities, like Chinese New Year, Hari Raya and Deepavali. The children especially enjoy celebrating the different festivals in multi-racial Singapore. Even before they saw the Town Council’s contest on the digital lift panels, the family had decided to emblazon their home in red and white decor. On National Day, they had a mini-celebration at home and enjoyed a specially-made cake in the shape of the Singapore flag. They then headed out to Marina Bay to soak in the festive mood and admire the fireworks. The second prize of a HP Deskjet printer went to Vivian Ong (pictured below, on right) whose entry with her relative Anna Teoh featured a collection of National Day Parade memorabilia. Vivian showcased her SG pride with her collection of items from National Day Parade (NDP) fun packs like a Singapore scarf and other collectables. The Hong Kah North resident is a big fan of NDPs, having attended many parades. Each year, she will try her luck to ballot for tickets to her favourite annual show where she gets to display her love for the Little Red Dot. Some years, she was so lucky that she won tickets to both the NDP Preview as well as the show on 9 August. She just loves the electrifying atmosphere at the parade. She said: “National Day has always been important to me because it is a rallying point to remind Singaporeans of our resilient spirit – that we will continue to persist and succeed, no matter the circumstances. Our Singapore Spirit will remain strong as long as we remain united. Majulah!” The third prize was won by the brother and sister pair, Aadon and Aadelynn Lim, who clinched a HP Deskjet printer. Keat Hong residents Aadon, 7, and Aadelynn, 6 decked in their patriotic outfits and next to a National Day banner outside their grandmother’s home in Bukit Gombak. Their mother, Pauline Chua, said they decided to support the social enterprise, Singapore Fashion Runway, which was selling beautiful outfits for this year’s National Day. There was only one piece of each size, which thankfully fit the children, Pauline said. August is a special month for Aadon and Aadelynn, she added, because they have a celebration lasting almost two weeks starting from their father’s birthday on August 1, and the country’s National Day on August 9. Happy 57th National Day, Singapore! Back
Treat the Blue Recycling Bin Right: No Mooncake Boxes Please!
Treat the Blue Recycling Bin Right: No Mooncake Boxes Please! With Mid-Autumn Festival round the corner, retailers are coming up with ever more extravagant packaging to entice consumers to purchase their mooncakes. While these boxes make for pretty gifts, the elaborate packaging generate more waste which is harmful for the environment. This problem of excessive packaging that cannot be recycled is not confined to Mid-Autumn Festival. On various occasions where gifts are exchanged, whether it is Valentine’s Day or Christmas, packaging waste will be generated. The more elaborate the packaging, the less likely it can be recycled. The glossy laminate and the decorative ribbons, metal studs or tassels all make recycling impossible. All that has only one place to go: straight into the incinerator. In fact, packaging waste contributes to a third of the 1.8 million tonnes of domestic waste generated last year, according to statistics from the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment! Repurpose or re-use where possible Although you cannot recycle mooncake boxes or fancy packaging, with some creativity, you can repurpose them for other uses. They can double up as serving trays or for keeping small items, from jewellery to sewing kits to stationery. Or, turn them into pretty lanterns! Some can even be reused as bags. Pretty mooncake boxes getting a second lease of life as containers to store treats and organise small items The right way to recycle You can do your bit for the nation’s greening effort — for the past two years, only about 13% of Singapore’s domestic waste gets recycled. Learn what can go into the blue recycling bins and what gets recycled. For example, consumers may conveniently deposit paper, plastics, glass and metals into the blue bin, assuming they will all be recycled. But many are not aware that only certain types of paper, plastics, glass and metals can be recycled. According to data given by the National Environment Agency, up to 40% of contents found in recycling bins cannot be recycled currently due to contamination from other non-recyclable products, including food and liquid waste. By identifying and placing only recyclable items into the recycling bins, consumers can do their bit to make sure everyone’s recycling efforts are not in vain. Check against these charts from the National Environment Agency before you head for the Bloobin! Paper: Plastics Glass Metal Back
Shine in SG Colours&Win!
Shine in SG Colours & Win! I ♥ SG! Have fun this National Day! Show your love for our little red dot and win! Join our National Day 2022 contest and a nifty HP printer could be yours. You can choose to: 1) Wear the SG Colours Jio or round up your family, neighbours and friends and dress up in matchy-matchy OOTDs (aka outfit of the day) that best display your passion for everything SG. Take the best shot together in your best stylo-milo pose and share it with us! You can make your entry more interesting by adopting a theme or era – from decking out in National Day Parade paraphilia to retro 60s fashion or futuristic red-and-white outfits. Or what about creating your very own designs of our national costume. Be original! or 2) Fly the SG Colours Dress up your home or vehicle in shades of reds and whites. Let your ideas and inspiration flow! For example, with some creativity and car decals, you can give your car a makeover. For the home, besides decking it with SG flags, a balloon arch or wall could very well be an eye-catching centrepiece and talk-of-your-hood. A total of 3 prizes will be awarded. (Psst! Here’s a tip: We are looking for the best-looking or most interesting and creative expressions, displays or photos.) The top 3 most interesting or best-looking entries win: 1st Prize: HP Envy Printer worth $108 2nd Prize: HP Deskjet Printer worth $66 3rd Prize: HP Deskjet Printer worth $57 Email your entries to corpcomms@ccktc.org.sg by 14 August 2359 hours. Send us your best photos showing your SG pride! Time to get those creative juices flowing! Happy 57th National Day, Singapore! See terms & conditions here. Back
Responsible Burning of Incense and Joss Paper during 7th Lunar Month
Responsible Burning of Incense and Joss Paper during 7th Lunar Month During the 7th Lunar Month yearly, Chinese devotees in Singapore observe the tradition of paying their respects to their loved ones who have departed. Chua Chu Kang Town Council would like to encourage all devotees to be considerate and play their part in keeping their environment clean by practising responsible joss paper/incense burning. Should you have any feedback or enquiries on the provision of incense burners, please do not hesitate to contact Chua Chu Kang Town Council at Hotline: 6569 0388. Thank you for your cooperation. Back
Gardening for Good: Harnessing HDB Rooftops for the Community
Gardening for Good: Harnessing HDB Rooftops for the Community HDB rooftops have become cool and green spaces. Besides solar panels, community gardens have also sprouted up there too. Residents of Sunshine Gardens will, no doubt, be familiar with the flourishing community garden (pictured above) that has taken over the rooftop of the multi-storey carpark at Block 489 Choa Chua Kang Avenue 5 in the last few years. This plot is lovingly tended by eight residents who generously share the fruits of their labour with everyone in the neighbourhood. They take turns to look after the garden – some attend to the garden daily, while others do so once or twice a week. One of the lead gardeners, 64-year-old Uncle Tey Ka Leong (pictured above harvesting a watermelon), a resident of Sunshine Gardens, said in Mandarin: “We like to experiment and grow all kinds of edibles. As long as we have the seeds, we will try cultivating them.” Every few weeks, bushels of fresh produce, ranging from kailan, cabbage and spinach, would be brought to the nearby Residents’ Committee (RC) room to be distributed to residents. Papayas, okras, Chinese radish and pomegranates are some of the delightful myriads of edible fruits and vegetables cultivated by the hardworking community gardeners. Gardening as exercise Uncle Tey started gardening as a way of getting fit. When he first moved into Sunshine Gardens seven years ago, his health wasn’t good. Gardening would let him do something useful: grow something edible while getting the much-needed exercise recommended by his doctors. He cleared a patch in front of his block for his first garden. His first crops were chilli, banana and sweet potato leaves. As he knew nothing about gardening, he turned to YouTube. He said whatever he picked up on gardening came from those free online tutorials. A Town Council staff who noticed Uncle Tey’s talent/ green thumbs encouraged him to pursue his gardening passion by balloting for a community gardening plot as part of the Community Improvement Projects for his estate. Guava tree laden with fruit in the garden. Guava tree laden with fruit in the garden. Challenges of growing edibles Mr and Mrs Ye are among the volunteers seen daily pottering in the garden. Uncle Tey takes turns tending the garden with four residents who come almost daily, while the remaining volunteers come once a week or every fortnight. Laksa leaves, chilli and pandan leaves – the must-have Asian cooking ingredients that can be found in the rooftop garden. Laksa leaves, chilli and pandan leaves – the must-have Asian cooking ingredients that can be found in the rooftop garden. Laksa leaves, chilli and pandan leaves – the must-have Asian cooking ingredients that can be found in the rooftop garden. These days, the challenging hot weather has made their efforts doubly hard. Last year, they could harvest about four to five baskets full of leafy green produce in three to four weeks. This year, they can barely fill a basket per harvest. Yet another challenge they face is the presence of unwanted visitors who can’t resist helping themselves to the garden produce, and inadvertently kill the plants in the process. Uncle Tey said he hopes fellow residents can leave the harvesting to him and his fellow gardeners, as all the produce is shared with the community. Gardening tips for good harvests Pumpkin, xiao bai cai and white brinjal flourish in the lush garden. Pumpkin, xiao bai cai and white brinjal flourish in the lush garden. Pumpkin, xiao bai cai and white brinjal flourish in the lush garden. The secret to Sunshine Gardens’ bountiful harvests: Daily and frequent monitoring of the plants’ health. According to Uncle Tey, one of their most important duties as resident gardeners is to check for pests as well as whether the plants have sufficient water. He said that edible plants need frequent watering, especially given the recent intermittent hot and dry spells. The resident gardeners water the plants twice a day. Uncle Tey said: “The trick is to ensure that the soil is sufficiently moist, but not wet, and not parched and cracking.” Uncle Tey has to take extra care to water the plants nowadays, due to the hot weather. They also make sure the right kinds of fertiliser are used. For example, dried chicken manure is good for leafy greens. The passionate gardeners also keep a vigilant eye out for pests. For example, if slugs are found, they will clear the affected patch immediately. They then leave it to fallow for the next two weeks to allow the sun’s heat to kill any remaining pests (or their eggs). Growing an edible garden is hard work, said Uncle Tey; they require much more effort than ornamental plants! But the reward of seeing their farm-to-table produce is well worth it! *Residents who are keen on gardening can form a gardening interest group with their Residents Network and apply to ballot for a community garden plot through the People’s Association or NParks allotment gardens. Back
Action for Green Towns – Upcycling from MRT Trains
Action for Green Towns – Upcycling from MRT Trains As one of Singapore’s three eco-towns, Chua Chu Kang Town has been spearheading and implementing actionable initiatives in our estates. We recently held the inaugural HaCCKathon with our residents, grassroots leaders and green advocates to co-develop plans to further green our environment. Our Sustainability Champion, Mr Don Wee shared that as part of the commitment to create sustainable homes in Singapore, all 15 PAP Town Councils will upcycle decommissioned parts from MRT trains to enhance residents’ living environments while reducing waste to landfill. From 2022 to 2025, the 15 Town Councils will upcycle at least 1500 seats, 600 intercom covers, 300 LED light covers and 1400 handrails from trains. This upcycling initiative will reduce about 14,400kg of waste from being disposed into the landfill, and allow Town Councils to save over $275,000 in amenities costs to deliver better value for residents. Based on suggestions from residents, the MRT parts will become seats in community areas to rest and connect, plant holders in community green spaces, hand rails for accessibility and safety for less mobile residents, and other amenities. Residents will be able to see these interesting MRT parts in Chua Chu Kang Town soon! Together, let’s play an active role in creating a better and more sustainable home in Chua Chu Kang Town! Share your eco-sustainable ideas and suggestions at corpcomms@ccktc.org.sg. Back
SG Clean Day on Sunday, 31 July 2022
SG Clean Day on Sunday, 31 July 2022 It’s our collective responsibility to keep the public spaces clean! In support of SG Clean Day on Sunday, 31 July 2022, we encourage all residents to help clean up your neighbourhood. You may want to gather your family, friends and neighbours to conduct litter-picking activities in your community together. We would also like to take this opportunity to remind all residents to bin the trash and keep the environment litter-free. Together, let’s create a cleaner and safer Chua Chu Kang Town for all! Back
How to Save Energy By Doing Nothing? Try These Hacks!
How to Save Energy By Doing Nothing? Try These Hacks! Wondering how you can reduce your energy consumption (and the shock to your wallet) without too drastic a change to your current lifestyle? Here are some hacks! Unplug It Don’t let idle appliances suck power (and money) while doing nothing. Leaving the TV, microwave or laptop charger on standby mode means allowing them to siphon power even when they are not actively in use. Leaving a 200W desktop computer switched on overnight (8 hours) daily will cost at least $152 more a year. Standby power can account for up to 10% of your home energy use. So turn off or unplug appliances when not in use. Time it Let the timers that come with your home appliances do your work for you. For example, you can save about $26* a year by simply programming your air-conditioner to turn off half an hour earlier than usual. The room will remain cool and you save some money to boot. To reap greater savings, time the aircon to run for an hour and subsequently switch to a fan to cool the room and reduce your power bill by $331* a year. Turn on appliances like water heaters only when you need to use them. Did you know that leaving a storage water heater switched on for the whole day could cost an additional $107 *? Instead, you should turn it on for only 10 to 30 minutes before use. Cover It Ensure you cover all liquids and food before storing them in the fridge. Uncovered items = more moisture released = compressor working doubly hard to keep the fridge cool = higher power bill Take note also that the warmer your room is, the harder your aircon has to work to cool it down. To minimise the sun’s heat, keep the curtains or blinds closed. Or use solar-blocking window film to reduce the sun rays. Try these hacks now. Adopting these habits takes minimal effort and fattens your savings! *based on June 2022 electricity tariff of 26 cents per kWh of electricity Back