'Parent's instinct': Man quickly stops car to rescue toddler outside Punggol mall

SINGAPORE: When a man spotted a young boy on the street outside a mall at Punggol, he did not hesitate but quickly pulled his car over and ran to take the toddler in his arms, without a thought for his own safety.

On Aug 15, Hamad Gaddafi Fauzi (@hyfasayf) posted a video of the incident on TikTok, which has since gone viral. Taken from his car’s dash cam, he can be seen running toward the boy and carrying him away.

“I’m not Gila (crazy); it's simply a parent's instinct and a lifesaver instinct. I managed to stop the boy just in time, as the right oncoming road is a blind spot. Watch this video to see how far your child goes, and remember, every parent's concern comes from love and care,” he wrote in the caption.

The clip starts just before Mr Hamad and his wife are exiting the carpark at Punggol Coast Mall, reportedly at around 6:00 p.m. They both spot a small boy, who looks like he’s about two years old, first walking on the zebra crossing, and then running toward traffic. Fortunately, there are no other vehicles in the immediate vicinity.

Mr Hamad then stops the car, alights, and runs toward the boy. As he approaches, the child turns toward him, but does not fuss when Mr Hamad picks him up and carries him in his arms.

Understandably, the clip has received many comments from TikTok users, some of whom thanked him for acting so quickly to help the toddler.

A commenter said he “deserved an award. Quick thinking and act fast before anything worse happens.”

Another asked if the boy’s parents said anything when he brought the child back to them.

“Got an answer that really felt like bringing the child to the nearest police station (and) let him panic!!!” Mr Hamad replied.

He told Mothership that not only did he pull his car over, but he also signalled two other vehicles behind him to stop as well, in order to ensure that the child would be safe.

Finding the boy’s parents

Mr Hamad also said that he took the boy to a bus interchange nearby in the hope of finding his father and mother. When that proved to be fruitless, he started to walk with the toddler to the mall, and a young man walking toward them turned out to be the boy’s father.

To his surprise, however, after he told the man that he found the child on the road, the father did not show any great concern, which could explain the comment Mr Hamad made on his video. Nor did the man thank him for rescuing and returning his child, merely saying that the boy had been  "running too fast”. /TISG

Read also: Good Samaritan who saved lost toddler from running onto road accuses helper of being remorseless