|
|
Monday, May 22, 2006
Not a very encouraging piece of news...
Refer to http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,106858,00.html
I was told his nick in singaporebikes was scooterer and I did notice this person in the forum before, giving good advice and opinions.
So what does this has to do with me? Because I was actually planning a solo ride to Korat (northern Thailand), during the period where I'm jobless while awaiting my 2nd job to start.
edit: The full article here, as I didn't know the website will remove old article
|
His first solo bike trip ends in tragedy
By Kor Kian Beng
May 20, 2006 |
IT was to be his first long-distance motorbike trip to southern Thailand alone.
It was against his family's wishes.
They were concerned that he would be alone, unlike his previous trips, when he travelled in a group.
But Singaporean Ng Kian Boon, 35, insisted and promised them that it would be his last long trip in a while because of his increasingly hectic work schedule as a research assistant and his studies.
He left on Sunday evening for Surat Thani province in southern Thailand and planned to return on Tuesday night.
Avid long-distance rider Apollo Ng, 36, told The New Paper that two days would be enough for a return trip to Surat Thani, which is about 1,250km from Singapore.
CRASHED INTO LAMP-POST
But on Monday afternoon, Kian Boon was killed in an accident in a town 100 km from Hat Yai when his Honda 1,300cc tourer bike crashed into a lamp-post.
The victim, who worked at NUS' Asia Research Institute (ARI), was trying to avoid another motorcycle that had turned suddenly into his path, the Thai police told his father.
His father, Mr Ng Yew Kang, 65, is a former high-ranking civil servant the ex Consul-General to Xiamen. He was also the director of arts and heritage policy at the then Ministry of Information and the Arts and the director of community and international relations at the National Library Board.
He now runs his own education consultancy service.
Kian Boon, the elder of two children, was passionate about bikes, said Mr Ng. He said his son had been on bike trips with his friends to Malaysia and Thailand. But this time, he decided to go on his own because his riding buddies were not free.
Mr Ng tried to dissuade him.
He said: 'Every time he went on these long trips, we would try to tell him not to go, that it might be dangerous. 'He said this would be his last long trip in a long while because he would be busy with work and studies.
'After this trip, he said he would be sticking to shorter trips.'
Mr Ng's worst fears were confirmed when he received a call from the Thai police on Monday at around 7pm telling him that Kian Boon had died in an accident. Mr Ng said the accident took place on a two-lane road.
'I knew that it was bad news. I was stunned and speechless,' he said.
Mr Ng said Kian Boon had not been involved in any traffic accidents before.
'His friends told us that he was a very careful rider, who always put on the necessary safety equipment,' he added.
'Also, they said he was riding on proper motorways and roads on this trip.'
Mr Ng flew to Bangkok with his wife and his daughter, Seow Hwee, the following morning. They wanted to find out what happened.
Assisted by the Singapore Embassy in Thailand, the family travelled to the town to make arrangements to bring the body back yesterday afternoon. Mr Ng said the impact of the crash caused Kian Boon's neck and collar bones to crack. The Thai police told him that his son had died on the spot.
Mr Ng said he was consoled that his son's face was a picture of calm.
'I can only console myself that he didn't appear to have suffered much before he died,' he told The New Paper at the wake at Sin Ming Drive last night.
Kian Boon's sister, Seow Hwee, 30, a teacher, said her brother was a good-humoured person who was always smiling and 'was always there when you needed him'.
Mr Ng described Kian Boon as a filial son who would often ride out to buy supper for the family, including his father's favourite beancurd snack.
Kian Boon was living with him and his wife at their Upper Serangoon home.
Mr Ng said that after Kian Boon graduated with a commerce degree from an Australian university, he went on to get three master's degrees.
He was also studying for a doctoral degree and had already started his thesis in social studies.
Kian Boon's wife, who is studying for her doctoral degree in the US, has been informed of his death.
She was expected to return to Singapore last night.
Mr Ng said the couple, who are childless, have been married for four years but had not held a Chinese customary wedding because of her ongoing studies. They were planning to do so at the end of the year.
Kian Boon was also planning to go on a holiday to Thailand with his wife next month, said Mr Ng.
'But now he can't fulfil both wishes,' he added. |
RIP.
Posted at 08:23 pm by snowparang
|
|
|
