BY BENSON ANG

A FULL-TIME National Serviceman died yesterday afternoon after being crushed by a Land Rover.

Second Lieutenant (2LT) Chan Wei Kit Nicholas, 21, a motor transport officer, was taking delivery of a Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) Land Rover in Seletar Campat about 11.30am.

The vehicle had been sent there for servicing.

2LT Chan was inspecting the Land Rover when it rolled backwards and hit him.

He was later found pinned under the vehicle.

A recovery vehicle was activated at about noon and managed to lift the Land Rover at 12.30pm.

A medical team, comprising an SAF doctor and two medics from the Seletar Medical Centre, tried to resuscitate 2LT Chan immediately.

He was taken to the Changi General Hospital (CGH) at about 12.35pm and he arrived at the hospital at about 12.50pm.

The SAF doctor and medics continued to try resuscitating him on the way to the hospital.

2LT Chan was pronounced dead at 1.07pm at CGH. He had just been commissioned as an officer about three weeks ago, according to his family.

Visibly distraught, they gathered at his grandmother's home along Clementi Avenue 4, yesterday.

They said they were most proud that 2LT Chan was commissioned as an officer despite having 'average results at school'.

Said a cousin, Mr Kelvin Yap, 29: 'When he was selected to be an officer, I was very proud of him. I'm not an officer myself, so I'm sure that he did very well in his army training.'

Mr Reuben Leong, 20, another cousin, said: 'He was just an average guy. So when he was selected to be an officer, we were so surprised and so proud of him. He must have shone in the army.'

Ms Maureen Leong, 62, one of 2LT Chan's aunts, said that he initially had a 'very tough' time during officer training because he missed home during overseas trips.

But he persevered, and during his commission ceremony, he was 'very happy', she said.

Another cousin, Mr Crispian Leong, 37, described 2LT Chan as a 'hardworking' man who was 'very independent'.

He added: 'When he (2LT Chan) was still a student, he worked during school vacations for his family and to earn some pocket money,'

During the holidays, 2LT Chan would typically work as a salesman in retail boutiques.

2LT Chan studied at Temasek Polytechnic, Yusof Ishak Secondary School, and St. Anthony's Primary School, said his family members.

At polytechnic, he specialised in retail management, and was hoping to further his studies in that area after he left the army.

He liked shopping and dressing up, and his favourite brand of clothes was Gucci and Dior.

'During the family gatherings, he was so well-dressed and funky,'Mr Crispian Leong said.

Added another cousin: 'Even after he stopped working to join the army, his passion for clothes was still there, and he would visit his former colleagues very often.'

Another aunt said that he bought a shirt on Thursday, a day before his death.

The shirt, she said, is still in his wardrobe, with the price-tag intact. 'He was the joy and pride of his mum,'said Mr Reuben Leong.

2LT Chan's father, an engineer, and his mother, a housewife, were at the Singapore Casket yesterday to handle his funeral arrangements.

Enjoys outdoors

Family members called him 'Nicky'. They said he had a girlfriend who is in her 20s, and he enjoyed going to the movies, and playing computer games.

Said Mr Yap: 'He particularly liked playing Championship Manager, and even lent me his copy of the game.

'He was very good with computers in general, and also knew how to fix things. Once, when I had a problem with my bicycle chain, he managed to help me.'

Mr Yap added that 2LT Chan also enjoyed the outdoors, playing football and cycling. He added that he and 2LT Chan once cycled around Singapore, from the latter's flat in Bukit Batok.

2LT Chan did not smoke, drink, gamble or go clubbing, said his family. They described him as 'energetic', 'playful' and 'happy-go-lucky'.

Said one cousin: 'He was a very bright adult, with loads of dreams, and was very good-looking too. He was very considerate of others.'

Ms Leong said: 'Once, when I was blue, he even counselled me.

'He told me: 'Your job is to make yourself happy. Don't bother about feeling down, and just live day to day,one day at a time.''

The Ministry of Defence and the SAF have extended their deepest condolences to 2LT Chan's family.

Mindef will assist the family in their time of grief and is investigating the incident.

This article was first published in The New Paper.