The noise pollution first started in October 2022, and it has persisted ever since. It is unclear to me if the concerned unit just moved in recently, as I live on the opposite block. It seems to me that the family has a mentally ill child (maybe ADHD or autism) who kept hitting the metal grill gate for an obscene period of time, be it day or night. As you know, the sound of the metal gate has a relatively high frequency, and thus, the noise could be clearly heard from a far distance. In November 2022, the boy could be heard screaming non-stop throughout the entire night (well past midnight). In addition, the family has a habit of not closing their door past midnight, which would only make the persistent noise pollution worse. On numerous occasions, the mom could be seen as losing control over her emotions because she too started shouting loudly and randomly in the corridor. I have asked a few neighbors who live on the same block as me if they can also hear the noise, and they can, but they have seemingly resigned their fate to the situation despite being mentally and emotionally "tortured" by the generated loud noise. The general consensus I gather from those neighbors whom I spoke to is that "HDB is like that one" or "I want to stay out of unnecessary trouble," etc. This speaks volumes about Singapore society’s behavior as a whole: we complain, but we don’t even take any action. I have raised the issue on two occasions with the HDB (with photos and video recordings), but the problem persists. Instead, HDB gave me the same standard template answer not once but twice, which reads: "When going about our daily routines, some activities will generate noise, and some of that noise can affect others, especially when we are living in close proximity with each other. For this reason, we urge everyone to be more considerate and to reduce noise that may impact our neighbors’ enjoyment of their homes, as well as to be more tolerant and patient with noise from the community." Yes, the situation has "improved considerably" now, and this statement is written in an ironic tone. Now, the boy has grown "smarter" by hitting the metal gate for a couple of seconds, then hiding inside the house, coming out again, and repeating the same action continuously in the daytime. Now, the boy would hit the interior cupboards at night instead of the front door’s metal gate to avoid detection and camera recording by the neighbors. Or, if the boy wants to continue his hobby of generating noise pollution at night, his family will switch off the light on his behalf. The family is doing this to ensure that it becomes difficult for his neighbors to capture video footage of their boy’s "masterpiece." I had written an email to my MP, but she didn’t reply. How about the grass-roots leaders? Well, two of them live next to my unit—a husband and wife. It is sufficient to say that the couple created such a huge volume of noise pollution themselves too. If I could already hear the noise from the opposite block, it is not difficult to imagine how torturous the experience might have been for the concerned household’s immediate neighbors. On numerous occasions, it could be observed that the parents made no effort to rein in their suspected mentally ill child. By the way, I am working from home, and the noise pollution is already affecting my daily routines and work performances. What would you do if you were in my shoes?
#10003: The noise pollution first started in October 2022,...
#10003· 765d ago
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