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Update on Jan 10: Responding to a Stomp query, SBS Transit spokeswoman Grace Wu said: "Thankfully no one, including our bus captain, was injured in this incident. "We are sorry for the distress and inconvenience caused to affected passengers. We are assisting the police in their investigations." Original article: A 74-year-old bus driver is assisting with police investigations after an accident in Bedok on Jan 9. The police told Stomp they were alerted to the accident along Bedok Reservoir Road towards Kaki Bukit at 12.15pm. The bus was believed to have skidded. No injuries were reported. Stomper Remy said he was returning to work after lunch when he witnessed the bus plough through the grass verge. A video that he shared shows an SBS Transit bus mounting the pavement. The bus appears to have narrowly avoided hitting a lamppost and a tree. An ambulance can be spotted at the scene. Remy recounted: "I was amazed to see the entire bus go in straight. You can see the bus on the right side of the grass when you turn into the Masjid Alkaff Kampung Melayu mosque and go straight on the second traffic light." Police investigations are ongoing.

While there are probable Singapore winners arising from the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ), analysts believe that there are even more Malaysian beneficiaries. “Stock beneficiaries are largely on the Malaysia side. Most of the nine zones focus on manufacturing and logistics, with some energy and other service sectors identified,” said Macquarie in a note. The SEZ comprises nine zones in the state of Johor that will enjoy tax incentives under the agreement. Both countries have set a target of 50 projects in five years and 100 projects in 10 years; the goal is to drive investments in 11 key sectors. Want the full story? PAP AND PAP la

3   If you’ve never dined at the Prada-run Pasticceria Marchesi in Milan or the Prada Caffe in London, there’s no need for FOMO. The Italian fashion house has just soft-launched its newly refreshed boutique at #01-01 and #02-15 Ion Orchard, now featuring its latest addition: an in-store Prada Caffe. Credit:Imran Jalal The dramatic spiral staircase that leads to the Prada Caffe The F&B joint occupies the second floor of the duplex store, which spans over 12,900 square feet and features everything from ready-to-wear to homeware and fine jewellery. Inspired by Prada’s iconic flagship at Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Milan – home to the brand’s first boutique, opened in 1913 – the cafe showcases the signature mint green walls and black-and-white chequered marble floor synonymous with Prada’s aesthetic. Credit:Pang Jia Wei Prada packages its takeaway desserts in sustainable packaging made from a composite of potato starch. Overlooking Orchard Road through its curved glass facade, adorned with the Prada triangle pattern, the cafe offers an elegant in-dining area with plush green velvet sofas, black marble-top tables, and dining chairs. There’s also dining-out service for those on the go. Credit:Pang Jia Wei   The Prada Caffe is currently not open for dine-in service, but customers can still enjoy takeaway options for its confectionery and desserts. The yet-to-be-confirmed menu features brunch and tea-time favourites. During our preview, we sampled items like Lobster Toast and Smoked Salmon & Avocado Crostone, along with indulgent sweet treats such as Berries Tartelet and Apricot Sacher Cake. Sweet-tooth customers will be spoilt for choice with tartlets, pralines, panettone, and pastel-hued monoportions that evoke the same sophisticated shades as Prada’s iconic bags. Credit:Noelle Loh Prada monoportions, each topped with the signature Prada triangle, come in a variety of flavours: green is pistachio, pink is red fruit, and blue is gianduja. Currently, the cafe is not taking dining-in reservations as they are fulfilling VIP appointments, but customers can still grab takeaway monoportions, tartlets, pralines, and panettone.

SINGAPORE - To feel cooler on a hot day, set the air-conditioner at a higher temperature than you intended and also turn on the fan – doing this conserves energy, too. The “hybrid cooling” solution was piloted at an office space in the Zero Energy Plus Building at the BCA Academy in Singapore. Over 11 weeks, the office occupants were exposed to two indoor conditions – the office cooled to 26.5 deg C with ceiling fans running, and the space cooled to 24 deg C. In the study published in 2023, they said that they found their comfort levels were similar in both scenarios. As a bonus, the air-con plus fan method used 30 per cent less energy. The pilot was led by the Berkeley Education Alliance for Research in Singapore. One of its faculty members is Professor Stefano Schiavon, who highlighted the findings of the pilot in his lecture at the First Global Heat Health Information Network (GHHIN) South-east Asia Heat Health Forum on Jan 7.     He is professor of architecture and civil and environmental engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. Using fans with air-con was one of numerous solutions that were discussed at the four-day conference, as heat health scientists, weather experts and policymakers convened to find ways to protect people living in a sweltering South-east Asia amid rising temperatures. Other solutions discussed include setting up national heat action plans and promoting ground-up efforts that can help vulnerable communities and remote villages stay safe. Taking lessons from the fan study, Prof Schiavon and Associate Professor Jason Lee from the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine are now tracking the sleep quality of construction workers in non-air-conditioned dormitories and residents in air-conditioned bedrooms. With more nights expected to get warmer in Singapore amid climate change, this new project seeks to find ways to optimise people’s thermal comfort at night. While climate change is causing global temperatures to rise, how each region experiences the heat differs. In South-east Asia, people are feeling chronically uncomfortable because the high humidity here prevents sweat from evaporating well. Heat strain, particularly due to exertion in the scorching weather, is also a greater risk for outdoor workers and those of lower income levels. The region has about 96 million workers in the agriculture and farming sectors. In 2023 and 2024, many South-east Asian regions were hit by severe heatwaves during the hotter months, with heat-related deaths reported in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines. In May 2024, Laotian farmers grappled with lower yields of crops like coffee and vegetables. While less visible than other problems, the dangers of heat are far more wide-ranging, including reduced productivity and economic loss, accidents at work and poorer mental health. And yet, many countries’ responses to extreme heat are often not as advanced as for other disasters like typhoons, landslides and floods.   The recently launched South-east Asia Hub under the GHHIN – housed at the National University of Singapore Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine – aims to coordinate a regional response to rising heat. The sweltering conditions in the region are also exacerbated by the development of cities and buildings, leading to the urban heat island effect as roads and buildings retain the sun’s heat. This makes urban places much hotter than their surrounding rural areas. Professor of urban climate Winston Chow of Singapore Management University noted that the urban heat island effect is stronger in Asian cities than in those in the Americas or Europe. “The likely reason speaks to the rapid urbanisation in terms of population growth and development that has occurred within the East, South and South-east Asian cities. “In Singapore, about 50 per cent of the increased temperature arises from urban development,” he said. Prof Chow added that even the best designed and well-thought-out heat action plans or climate resilience plans require not just political will, but also financial resources and backing. He noted that much of climate finance is still directed towards mitigation, that is, carbon emission reduction efforts. “More investments towards heat adaptation measures are sorely needed,” he said. One point that was repeated throughout the Forum was the need to keep potential solutions to heat stress applicable across different countries and circumstances. Professor Winston Chow speaking at the First Global Heat Health Information Network South-east Asia Heat Health Forum on Jan 7.ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH Professor Ollie Jay, a heat and health expert from the University of Sydney, emphasised that solutions have to be affordable and scalable, especially for those in the construction and agricultural sectors. He said: “It’s important to keep in mind that the interventions that we test are widely applicable to the most vulnerable. Often, people really want to (look at) cool tech and fancy cooling vests. That’s completely useless to a large proportion of the population. The people who are most vulnerable to heat health impacts are often operating in pretty resource-scarce environments. So the interventions that we test are, by necessity, very simple and very low-resource.” Prof Jay cited the use of fans, shade and misting as examples of simple, scalable interventions. On the other hand, some solutions cannot be applied in all situations. Prof Jay said fans can be a good cooling measure in a highly humid place up to 38 deg C. But in a hot, dry region at 45 deg C and above, fans triple the rate of overheating, he added. Fans help sweat evaporate, providing relief. In dry conditions, a person does not sweat, and blowing hot air on the skin would make him feel hotter, increasing strain on the heart as well. The Straits Times is the media partner for the First GHHIN South-east Asia Heat Health Forum, held in Singapore from Jan 7 to 10, 2025. Shabana Begum is a correspondent, with a focus on environment and science, at The Straits Times.