An elderly man was found dead in a shophouse days before Hari Raya Puasa.
His passing went unnoticed until the shop owner discovered a "smell and pool of water mixed with bodily fluids" seeping through the shop floor.
Body discovered amidst distressing scene
In a TikTok video uploaded by a employee from DDQ Services, a trauma cleaner came across "one of the saddest cases" in their careers thus far.
The video was accompanied by the Singapore geolocation tag, suggesting it was a local case.
An earlier video by the TikToker said they were "just creating awareness of trauma cleaning in Singapore".
Upon entering the small room owned by the elderly man, they were hit with the overwhelming sight and stench of death.
The video showed a grimy mattress left on the ground, stained by "water from a choked sewage pipe, bodily fluids, and the remnants of decay".
It looked like the house had been left untidied for quite some time.
"I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed by the tragedy that had unfolded in this tiny room," wrote the trauma cleaner.
He had planned to celebrate Raya alone
Still attempting to process the troubling scene, the trauma cleaner's attention was caught by something hanging in the corner of the room.
There, a pair of baju kurung, a samping and a pair of shoes waited silently to be worn.
The presence of the outfit turned the little room into some kind of uncanny limbo, a space where signs of life still hung around waiting for someone long gone to pick them up again.
It made the scene of death all the more unsettling.
Listening to the shop owner talk about the deceased, all the trauma cleaner heard was a tale of loneliness.
"The elderly man had no family or relatives left, and yet he had been looking forward to Raya, excited to celebrate the special occasion even if he had no one to share it with. He had also shared his dream of finally owning a home, a dream that was so close to becoming a reality."
Trauma cleaner puts life in perspective
Deeply moved by the late man's optimism in life, the trauma cleaner honoured him by sharing the lessons learned from his unexpected passing.
The trauma cleaner reminded people to cherish moments of joy with their loved ones, and to help those going through life alone.
"It taught me to hold on to hope even in the darkest of times, for life is fleeting, and we never know when our story might come to an end.
https://mothership.sg/2023/04/elderly-man-dead-hari-raya/
