SNAFU - Situation Normal All Fouled Up

Following the great flood at Orchard Road in June it was revealed that the PUB checks its drainage canals once every three months. They have promised to do better, the frequency of checks increased to every month.

We now know that "at least once a year', the 480 pedestrian overhead bridges here are checked for defects and to evaluate their condition. This comes about after a lorry carrying a crane crashed into a 40-year-old, 4.5m-high bridge near Sixth Avenue on Saturday 3 July 2010. Since 2007, there have been 28 cases of bridges, gantries and covered walkways being struck by vehicles exceeding the height limit of 4.5 metres. Vehicles exceeding 4.5m are supposed to have a police escort, if anyone bothered to check at all.

DBS seems to be similarly afflicted by a lapse in routine checks. Singaporeans woke up Monday morning, 5 July 2010, to an island-wide breakdown of over 1,000 DBS and POSB automated teller machines (ATMs). For over 7 hours, the bank's internet and mobile banking system were kaput, crippling NETs and credit card transactions. In 2001, both its ATMs and internet banking were also hit but the system was restored within an hour. "Prior to 10am, DBS and POSB took proactive measures to ensure that there was minimal disruption to customers who needed cash urgently for their day to day needs," said the DBS spokesman, apparently unaware that those depending on plastic were the most inconvenienced. DBS (aka Damn Bloody Slow bank) was quick to jump on their outsource vendor IBM, who presumably should have done the checking.

DBS could face possible action from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). "As part of IT and operational risk management, banks are required to investigate promptly the causes of system breakdowns and take immediate measures to rectify system failures and restore customer services," said MAS on Monday. "As part of its supervision of banks, MAS assesses banks' compliance with these requirements, and will take appropriate supervisory action where necessary," it said. MAS did not say who checks when and how often the assessment is conducted.