Bangladeshi worker dies after falling with toppled tree in Singapore

A 38-year-old Bangladeshi worker has died after falling with a tree that toppled during felling work at a private residence in Singapore’s Katong area on October 13.

The police and Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said they were alerted to the work-related incident on Cranborne Road at around 2.35pm that day, The Straits Times reported on Tuesday.

Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said the worker was carrying out tree-felling work when the tree toppled at its base, causing him to fall with it.

He was taken unconscious to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, where he later died, the authorities said.

Police said preliminary investigations had found no suspicion of foul play. The police and MOM are investigating the incident.

The ministry said employers must ensure that trees and work methods are properly assessed before felling operations begin. They must also ensure that the work is carried out by trained workers following established safety procedures.

The worker was employed by Soh & Tan Enterprises. MOM has ordered the company to suspend all tree-felling activities involving tree climbing pending the investigation.

A spokeswoman for the company told The Straits Times that the worker had been with the firm for “a few years”. He worked as a tree climber and was responsible for pruning and cutting trees at the site.

The spokeswoman said he was wearing a safety harness during the operation.

The company is arranging his funeral and cooperating fully with the authorities’ investigation, she added.

The death comes as Singapore reports a rise in workplace fatalities. In its mid-year Workplace Safety and Health Report released on September 8, MOM said more workers had died from work-related injuries in the first half of 2026 than during the same period last year.

Singapore’s workplace fatality rate rose to 1.1 deaths per 100,000 workers in the first six months of 2026, up from 0.97 in the corresponding period of 2025.