Driver in Tampines chain collision admits to running red light at 129kmh, crashing into 3 cars and killing 2

On April 22, 2024, a deadly chain collision occurred at a junction in Tampines, Singapore, resulting in the deaths of two individuals. The accident was attributed to a driver who admitted to running a red light at a high speed of 129km/h to 134km/h. Most of the vehicles involved in the collision were driven by parents picking up their children from school.

The driver, Muhammad Syafie Ismail, had dropped off a GrabHitch passenger in Bedok earlier. Upon seeing another car overtake him, he became enraged and accelerated to overtake dangerously. Swerving in and out of lanes, he narrowly missed a motorcyclist and side-swiped the vehicle he had overtaken, continuing to accelerate.

At a junction where the light had been red for 26 seconds, Syafie crashed into three vehicles, causing them to spin and collide with each other and additional vehicles. The first vehicle, driven by a 48-year-old man ferrying his 17-year-old daughter to school, flipped and overturned, colliding with two other vehicles in the process. The 17-year-old student died at the scene, while the man broke down upon hearing her death and was comforted by a nurse who helped him see her body.

The second vehicle, driven by a 42-year-old woman taking her 11-year-old son to school, also spun and collided with the first vehicle. The woman found her son, who had run away, and they returned to the scene where the first victim was trapped under their overturned vehicle. The third vehicle, driven by a 43-year-old man with his two daughters, mounted a kerb and crashed into a lamppost after the impact. The man, who suffered a sprained neck, was taken to the hospital, while the girls walked home as it was nearby.

The school bus, driven by a 60-year-old woman ferrying an 11-year-old student, was hit by Syafie's vehicle, which had already collided with the first vehicle. The bus driver attended to the injured student, and her own children later took her to the hospital due to shock and chest pain. She was diagnosed with anxiety and prescribed pain relief medication.

The van, driven by a 64-year-old man ferrying colleagues, was also affected by the chain collision. The driver suffered a fracture and tenderness, and his arm was placed in a sling. Syafie's vehicle came to a stop only when he hit green railings along Tampines Avenue 4. He remained in his seat until a passerby helped him out and he waited for the authorities' arrival. The accident caused significant traffic disruption, with one person reporting being stuck in traffic for 45 minutes.