| BEDOK Reservoir View. Sounds nice, said one resident, but this HDB block stinks. The view from some windows in Block 761 is through a coating of human waste. Residents on the lower floors of the 18-storey block have to live with vomit and faeces being thrown down regularly. Clothes hung up to dry have been soiled and there are nauseating streaks on kitchen windows. Housewife Ayu Othman, 47, who lives on the fourth storey, said: 'Every day something is thrown down. Bags of vomit, newspaper with faeces, fish scales and innards, chilli sauce. It makes me think they don't have a dustbin.' Said her daughter, Widya Rawi, 20, who works in sales: 'It's very smelly. Why can't they use a toilet like others?' The family has had to throw away clothes because they were too soiled and smelly to clean. The littering has got worse in the past two months, said Madam Ayu, who has lived in the block for five years. Now, it happens so often that she has stopped trying to clean her kitchen window. 'I give up. What's the point of cleaning when it will just get dirty again? 'I no longer hang my clothes outside, but I still have to keep my window open because the ventilation helps the clothes to dry,' she said. Another resident, who declined to be named, said she and others have complained to the East Coast Town Council about the problem. The woman, who is retired, said: 'They have come to clean up the mess, but the situation has yet to be rectified. 'I am always afraid that my home will be dirtied by excrement coming through my window.' Mr Steven Ong, senior property officer for the town council, said there had been nine complaints about the littering at Block 761 in the past year. Every complaint received is copied to the National Environment Agency, which will decide if a night ambush is necessary. (See report at right.) The town council has sent notices to all the units that share the affected laundry well, said Mr Ong. Residents were reminded to use the refuse chute and warned they can be fined up to $1,000 for such littering. They were also asked to report any high-rise litterbugs they see to the town council by calling its 24-hour hotline, 1800 444 9459. The property officer in charge of the precinct surrounding Block 761 has been told to keep a lookout. And officers will go door-to-door to advise residents against high-rise littering.  | | Miss Widya Rawi holding a soiled newspaper that landed on her ledge. Her family has given up trying to keep their windows clean.--Pictures: MOHD ISHAK | Mr Ong said they are monitoring the situation closely. But, he added: 'The littering happens at irregular times and often at night, so it's difficult to catch the culprit red-handed.' Some residents suspect an old man who lives on one of the higher floors, as he has been seen urinating and defecating at the void deck. But there may be more than one culprit. Madam Rupiah Kamari, 48, who lives on the ground floor, has seen empty drink cans and leftover food being thrown from the upper floors. 'There are children who play at the ground floor. It's so dangerous to throw cans down because it may hit them or others passing by,' said Madam Rupiah, who works as a babysitter. Another resident, Mr Foo Suan Wong, 68, said it's also common to see dog owners who do not pick up after their pets. 'When I scolded one of them, he had the cheek to say 'It's not like my dog is doing this in your home'. I was so mad,' the retiree said in Mandarin. Perhaps it's time for a project like the Community-Led Efforts Against Littering that was launched earlier this month by Tanjong Pagar GRC.
Growing problem island wide THERE has been a 66 per cent increase in the number of high-rise littering cases reported to the National Environment Agency (NEA). Last year, there was an average of 120 cases per month while this year, the figure has jumped to 200. But no one has been caught red-handed this year. A spokesman for the NEA said it has received complaints about Block 761 Bedok Reservoir View. NEA officers conducted stakeouts. 'However... no one was seen in the act of throwing anything out from their windows,' she said. The complainants could not identify the culprit or the unit the litter was thrown from. Depending on what is thrown, high-rise litterbugs can be fined up to $200, or referred to the court for a maximum fine of $1,000 for the first offence. They may also be slapped with a Corrective Work Order. | 
