Rising temperatures pose growing risk to port workers

Climate Change Editor

- David Fogarty

The giant tower cranes that load and unload container vessels at Singapore's ports are a testament to the Republic's trade prowess - but also its vulnerability to heat. For those who maintain these mammoth machines that tower more than 60m above the wharves, increasingly hot weather is proving to be a challenge.

Engineer Desmond Chia, 39, is part of a rapid-response team trained to keep the cranes working 24/7 by quickly fixing breakdowns at PSA's port in Pasir Panjang.

This role may see him working on the hydraulic track system that allows the cranes to move along the wharves, or fixing an electrical issue high up in the control room.

But high temperatures at ground level and up on the cranes have been taking a toll on him and his colleagues.

"For the past two years or so, we can feel it is getting warmer than it used to be," he told The Straits Times.

Mr Chia, who has worked at PSA for 12 years, said the hotter weather has become a common topic among his colleagues.

Ports in Singapore and globally are often highly exposed to the sun. The concrete and asphalt surfaces, as well as stacks of thousands of metal containers in the loading yards and along the wharves, soak up the sun's heat, raising the ambient temperature.

That heat is retained for hours, well into the evening.

Like most major ports around the world, PSA's operates 24/7.

However, the night crew does not necessarily have it much easier when working outdoors.