Unknown powder-like substance delays Emirates flight

SINGAPORE: An Emirates flight on transit to Dubai was delayed for 76 minutes on Thursday after cabin crew found an unidentified powder-like substance in a toilet on board the plane.

As a precaution, the airline alerted airport authorities after it landed at Changi Airport from Brisbane at about 8.20am.

A Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) hazardous materials (hazmat) team, wearing decontamination suits, then boarded the plane. No passengers were on board the plane at that time.

SCDF said the substance was found to be a disinfectant.

And the aircraft was cleared for boarding.

The flight, EK433, departed Singapore for Dubai at about 10.56am.

Emirates said it "regrets the inconvenience caused but the safety and well-being of passengers and crew is paramount".

-CNA/ac/ir

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1103060/1/.html

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Dickson Tang:
This article proves that our civil services are indeed working hard to maintain law and order within our country. Also, Emirates has shown itself as a trustworthy airline by reporting such an incident even though it might potentially damage their image to the passengers in the flight and its such a minor incident. It also shows that Emirates Airlines has placed its passengers first and that is extremely commendable. After all, lives are more important than everything else.

Jonathan Ho:
In my personal opinion, I think the cabin crew was right to report the unidentified power-like substance to the airport authorities. Who knows it could have led to a serious consequence if it was a bio-terrorism. The SCDF was also swift and professional in assisting in the situation and cleared the air quickly. Fortunately, the substance happened to be just a disinfectant.

Joycelyn Yong:
After reading this article, I feel even safer to be living in Singapore now. It is apparent that security in Singapore is rather tight the fact that they went all out from getting the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) hazardous materials (hazmat) team down to the plane specially for an unidentified powder-like substance found in its toilet to only allowing passengers' boarding after making sure the substance is a disinfectant. Although the Emirates flight on transit to Dubai was delayed for 76 minutes, I believe the precautions were absolutely right and for the passengers' good. Nobody should complain at all. Everyone should be glad to board a plane checked and cleared. We should be thankful and appreciate the effort of both Emirates and the SCDF team.

Oh Yi Hong:
What could be more important than your life? In the article, the cabin crew found a powder-like substance and suspects that it could be a danger to humans and hence alerted our local airport authorities. Because of this, the flight was delayed by about 76 minutes while the Civil Defence Force took the substance and examines what it is.
Life, something that is fragile yet wonderful. With your life, you can do many things you want to do, like working, get married, exploring new places and many more. But, if you are dead, you will not be able to do anything, you will not be able to even walk or talk or breathe or look!
If the 76 minutes can saves more than a hundred people, I will be willing to wait patiently for the experts to examine if that substance could be a danger to us. If I am in-charge of Emirates, I will also do the same thing, as the 76 minutes can help to save hundreds of passengers and also to protect my own employees.

Yin Shuwen:
I feel that such precaution measure by the airline is imperative even though the matter is seemingly of a small magnitude. This is because the powder-like substance might be a hazardous material and endanger the passengers' safety if not attended to when the passengers board the plane. Hence, due to the safety concerns, it is of utmost importance that the SCDF is alerted to attend to the problem instead of trying to solve it themselves. Even though the matter incurs a 76min delay, the safety of the passengers are accounted for. As such, I feel that this is a reasonable tradeoff and that the decision to call in the SCDF was a wise one.

SP students invent recycling bins for homes

By Esther Ng | Posted: 03 January 2011 2031 hrs

SINGAPORE: A group of Singapore Polytechnic students has come up with an award-winning recycling bin which makes it more convenient for households to recycle.

The students conducted a poll with 100 HDB households, and found the majority would recycle if there was a convenient and space-saving bin that could fit into their kitchen.

The six students then went on to design a 106-litre bin -- significantly smaller than typical recycling bins seen in pubic -- which can fit into the kitchens of most households.

The three recycling compartments of the bin are flexible, and can be enlarged to hold more waste when necessary.

The bin also features a built-in compactor which serves to maximise space for waste.

There is also a "foot pedal" attached to the base of the bin, designed to flatten plastic bottles or cans.

For their innovative design, the students won the Special Merit Award of S$2,000 from the Green Wave Environmental Care Competition, organised by Sembawang Shipyard.

The students, who are currently looking for a manufacturer, said the bin would likely not cost more than S$20.

-CNA/wk

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1102491/1/.html

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Dickson Tang:
In order for people to recycle, recycle bins are essential. This group of Singapore Polytechnic students did it! Not only are the recycle bins small and kitchen-fitting, there are three flexible compartments and a foot pedal specially for flattening plastic bottles or cans. These recycle bins would allow us to recycle easily. Since they can be placed at home in our kitchens, being more accessible they will encourage us to recycle more. With these bins, recycling is promoted! With a clean and green environment, mankind will thrive as well!

Jonathan Ho:
Coming up with a recycle bin that is more convenient for households to recycle is an ingenius idea. Having scarce resources in Singapore, recycling is the optimal solution. On the surface, the introduction of this recycle bin promotes recycling. However, there is more to it. People would actually realize the importance of recycling the fact that students are aware of the need to recycle and even initiated recycle bins for home. Therefore, everyone should purchase at least one such recycle bin per household and place it in the kitchen. This idea is good.

Joycelyn Yong:
Winning an award is honorable enough, what's more for coming up with a user-friendly recycle bin, we should be proud of this group of Singapore Polytechnic students. It's consoling to hear that there are still people and in fact, teenagers, who care about our environment these days. Not only is the creation towards recycling, these students considered the convenience of the bin maximizing space for all. We can tell from the Special Merit Award from an Environmental Care Competition by Sembawang Shipyard that the world's very concerned about our environment, thus such event organised and the invention of this awesome recycle bin, with a foot pedal. Indeed, I would encourage every household to get this bin upon manufactured.

Oh Yi Hong:
It is wonder to hear that Singapore teenagers are putting in effort into protecting our Earth. Until today, our mother Earth is still getting hurt and if we do not do anything about it, mother Earth will soon be destroyed by us, humans. We have to recycle, reuse and reduce in order to minimize the damage done to our mother Earth.
To me, when I am at home, I will also not make an extra effort into separating the rubbish into paper, plastics and others as it would take up a lot of time. But with this invention, people can now recycle with little effort!
Furthermore, the space required is very little, and the production cost of this invention will not cost more than $20. It will definitely be a must in every household in my opinion, as protecting our Mother Earth is everyone's responsibility!

Yin Shuwen:
This article caught my attention as the topic was of my interest. Recycling is something thought of many of us since we were little. Not many do so, as shown by the statistics, due to the lack of accessibility to recycle bins. I personally feel the same. With this marvelous invention, I believe households would be more than willing to purchase the inexpensive recycle bin. This convenient bin will not only increase the accessibility for us to recycle (easier for us to separate thrash into different categories); it will also help save the earth by reducing the impact of manmade damages. In addition to these, the foot pedal adds on the usefulness of this bin as it helps reduce the space taken by the trash. I look forward to the day this invention is published and made available to the public to purchase.