SINGAPORE - The police are investigating an incident where a metal pole smashed the windscreen of a van travelling on the Tampines Expressway (TPE). The incident happened on Tuesday evening (Aug 7).

The 31-year-old driver, Abdul Rasyid Sulaiman, said in a Facebook post on Friday afternoon that he was lucky that the piece of metal did not hit his face as it pierced the glass. He also said that he managed to pull over to the road shoulder.

Mr Rasyid, an operations technician, told The Straits Times that he had been driving at 70kmh on the TPE, heading towards Punggol, when the metal pole came flying towards him “out of nowhere”.

His body and face were sprayed with glass fragments and he said that it was lucky he had been wearing sunglasses.

In response to queries, the police said that they were alerted to the incident on the TPE towards Seletar Expressway before Punggol Exit at 4.57pm. The driver was conscious when taken to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital.

Mr Rasyid added that he was shaken by the experience but was not injured.

Scans showed that he had no spine or nerve injuries and he was discharged after being warded for one night.

In a video and photos posted by Mr Rasyid, the pole can be seen jutting out of the van’s windscreen with a web of cracks in the glass spreading out from it.

Glass fragments are seen scattered all over the dashboard, the passenger and driver seats, and the floor of the vehicle.