Sergeant (APF) Uvarajah Krishnasamy has handled several difficult situations during his 16-year career with Certis.
But the one the traffic marshal was confronted with on the Bukit Timah Expressway (BKE) earlier this month will always remain etched in his memory.
On July 8, at about 4pm, the 39-year-old received a call from his colleague that a horse was galloping along the BKE. He initially thought it was a joke, but soon found out that it was indeed true.
Videos of the brown horse weaving through the traffic had gone viral.
Sgt Uvarajah immediately headed to the place where the horse was last seen.
The animal lover has four pet dogs back home in Malaysia. But the last time he saw a horse was a few years ago, when he was holidaying in India.
“I was shocked and trembling when I saw the horse. It was so enormous,” Sgt (PFA) Uvarajah told tabla!.
Before reaching the Turf Club Avenue exit on the expressway, he switched off the siren on his motorbike so as to not startle the horse. Making sure that the traffic was not disrupted, he tried to control the horse with his hands but failed.
He then decided to overtake the horse and block it with his motorbike. The horse appeared agitated at his move and Sergeant Uvarajah was fearful that it might kick out.
But he summoned all his courage and patted the horse’s head. Soon the horse lowered its head.
Sensing the opportunity, Sgt Uvarajah grabbed the horse’s rein and walked the horse to the Singapore Turf Club while directing the traffic away from the animal.
After 20 minutes, he returned the horse – which belonged to Bukit Timah Saddle Club – to its stable.
According to the Singapore Turf Club horse handler who took over, the horse was new and was practising with a new trainer when it panicked and ran out.
“Maybe my uniform looked like that of a jockey, and was familiar to him,” said Sgt Uvarajah. “To keep myself safe, I held on to the horse’s lead and walked in front of it as I guided it away from the road. The most challenging thing was having to handle the horse while directing traffic away at the same time.”
Sgt Uvarajah, who hails from Malacca, had handled only small animals, such as cats and dogs. He was thankful that although many people on the road took photos and videos of him tackling the horse, none honked and alarmed the animal.
“My wife was stunned when I told her what happened,” he said. “My two sons love animals, so they were thrilled when they heard about the incident.”
