The death toll of the deadly earthquake that struck Flores Island, Indonesia on Aug. 15 has increased to 47, local authorities said.

According to the Jakarta Post, the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency said another 50 people were injured.

Shallow quake

The magnitude-7.7 quake struck off the coast of Flores, an island in eastern Indonesia, at around 5:30am local time yesterday (Aug. 15).

Its epicentre was located off the north coast of Flores, about 68 kilometres northwest of the coastal town of Ende.

Multiple strong aftershocks were felt after the initial tremor, including one at a magnitude of 6.1.

The earthquake recorded a shallow depth of 15km, indicating a higher likelihood of causing more damage given its close proximity to the surface.

It was initially reported that 38 people were dead while two people were seriously injured.

Another 11 suffered minor injuries and thousands were displaced.

Nearly 160 houses, dozens of schools and other public buildings were damaged, according to the Indonesian National Disaster Mitigation Agency.

It added that rescue teams will target buildings where people are reportedly trapped.

President Tharman Shanmugaratnam penned words of encouragement for Singapore's national football team ahead of their second leg semi-final match against Thailand in the Asean Championship.

The Lions went down 1-3 to Thailand, who are the top-ranked football team in the region, in the first leg of the Championship semi-finals on Aug. 15.

The match was played at Jalan Besar Stadium.

The Thai team pulled ahead early in the match, with Singapore's Ilhan Fandi curling one into the net in the 84th minute to grant the Lions some respite.

Amidst the roaring crowd of Lions supporters were President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and his wife Jane Ittogi, who were seen singing along to "Home".

Never give up: President Tharman

Following the Aug. 15 match, President Tharman took to Facebook to cheer the Lions on ahead of their next match against the Thais.

"The Lions went down against Thailand tonight, but earned the hearts of the crowd with their fighting spirit," he wrote.

President Tharman, known to be a sports enthusiast, noted that Singapore had equal command of the game, but the Thai's "superior finishing" game them a two goal advantage.

To the Lions, he wrote, "Wish them the best in the second leg of the Asean Championship semi-finals in Bangkok next Tuesday. Never give up!"

Going again in Bangkok

The teams will face off again in the second leg of the semi-finals on Aug. 18 in Bangkok.

The Thais have won the Asean Championship the most times, being seven-time champions.

Singapore follows behind, having lifted the trophy four times.

In a post-match interview, Lions head coach Gavin Lee acknowledged the performance put up by the 12th man in the stands, saying that the fans' unyielding spirit kept the team going despite the scoreline, CNA reported.

The head coach commented that the players will recover from the defeat "as good as they can" and will want to "go and right the wrong" in Bangkok.

A Singaporean man wanted by the Malaysian police for three years over a corruption probe has issued a statement denying he "ran away".

He will continue cooperating with the Malaysian police, he said on Aug. 14.

Wanted for 3 years

Poh Po Lian was described by Malaysian media reports as being "on the run" from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) for the past three years.

According to the New Straits Times, he, alongside Malaysian national Jennifer Kok Sau Keng, was being sought to assist in an ongoing investigation.

After supposedly remaining untraceable despite promising to meet investigators 10 months ago, an arrest warrant was issued against the duo on Aug. 4.

One of Poh's former addresses was reportedly 15 White House Park in Singapore.

Both his and Kok's last known addresses are different condominium complexes in Kuala Lumper, Malaysia.

Not on the run

Poh issued a statement via a spokesperson on Aug. 14, where he denied running away from the Malaysian police.

"I am very surprised to hear about the arrest warrant and the latest turn of events. I have always cooperated with the Malaysian authorities," he said.

He added that he travelled to Malaysia and cooperated with the MACC at their office in Johor Bahru on Mar. 5, as well as providing a statement.

On Mar. 11, he also attended the probate hearing for the estate of the late Malaysian tycoon Ta Kin Yan at the High Court in Kuala Lumpur, he claimed.

Poh and Ta were co-founders of WazLian Group, a Malaysian hotel conglomerate. Poh was granted probate for Ta's estate after his death in 2024.

"I attended the hearing in person in Kuala Lumpur, as the executor and trustee of his estate."

According to Poh, his solicitors also sent a formal representation to the MACC on Mar. 27 to request that the matter be reviewed and that no further action be taken.

"I have never “run away” and any accusation in this regard is false. As shared, I have continued to cooperate and have travelled to Malaysia when required.

⁠I will continue to cooperate with the authorities in every way possible."

The Democratic Republic of Congo's current outbreak of Ebola is on track to be the deadliest outbreak of the disease ever, said the director-general of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

According to the BBC, Tedros noted that "at its current pace", the outbreak declared on May 15, 2026, would "eclipse" the 2014 to 2016 epidemic that claimed the lives of at least 11,000 people.

A WHO news release on Aug. 14 said the current Bundibugyo virus disease (BVD) outbreak has seen at least 4665 cases and caused more than 2184 deaths as of Aug. 12.

This equates to a crude case fatality rate of 46.8 per cent.

Outbreak likely began in February

The outbreak was officially declared in May but was believed to have started at least three months before, reported the BBC.

The WHO said it hoped to reverse the spread of the disease within three months but cautioned that this was to bring transmission under control.

In a press conference, WHO Africa director Mohamed Janabi said: "We are chasing the virus, the virus is ahead of us".

He said research showed the virus started spreading in February and was initially misdiagnosed as malaria or typhoid.

Bundibugyo 

The 2026 outbreak is caused by a rare Ebola strain, Bundibugyo, which has previously caused two known outbreaks in 2007 and 2012.

There are no approved vaccines or recognised therapeutic drugs that can treat BVD.

The BBC noted that regional instability in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo has hindered efforts to control the spread of the disease.

Health workers have only been able to reach around 30 per cent of cases.

Ebola symptoms

BVD's incubation period ranges from two to 21 days; infected individuals are only infectious when symptoms onset.

Early indicators include fever, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, and sore throat before progressing to gastrointestinal symptoms, organ dysfunction, and, in some cases, bleeding.

A powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Flores, an island in eastern Indonesia, at around 5:30am local time on Aug. 15, leaving 38 people dead and thousands displaced.

According to Kompas, Indonesia's National Agency for Disaster Countermeasures (BNPB) Head Suharyanto said that an additional two people were seriously injured, while 11 others suffered minor injuries.

The BBC reported that buildings were damaged and that dozens of aftershocks followed.

Any earthquake less than 70km deep is considered shallow, and the shallower an earthquake is, the more likely it will cause more damage as it is closer to the surface, according to CNN.

The quake had a depth of 15 km.

Tsunami warning issued and lifted 3 hours after quake

According to the BBC, the governor of East Nusa Tenggara province, Emanuel Melkiades Laka Lena, said at a news conference that the victims were killed in their sleep by collapsing rubble.

A tsunami warning was issued but lifted around three hours after the initial quake when no significant rise in sea level was detected.

The Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Bencana (BNPB), or Indonesia's National Agency for Disaster Countermeasures, said 2,000 people had evacuated or relocated on their own, BBC reported.

Several roads have also been closed due to landslides resulting from the quake, Kompas reported.

The agency added in a Facebook post that of the fatalities recorded, three were in Sikka province, six in Manggarai province, and five in East Manggarai province.

A domestic helper has been sentenced to eight weeks' jail after causing her 94-year-old employer to fall and hit his head at home.

It happened as she grabbed and wrestled the elderly man's walking stick from his hands, because he had knocked on her door repeatedly to ask her to prepare food for him.

The helper, 31-year-old Sulastri Wulandari, pleaded guilty on Aug. 14 to one charge of causing hurt, and was sentenced that same day.

What happened

According to court documents, Wulandari was working as a helper for the victim, Thoo Yong Huat, at the time of the offence on Feb. 21, 2026.

At about 10:40pm that night, she was resting in her room when Thoo knocked on her door.

When she opened the door, he told her he was hungry and wanted her to prepare food for him.

She told him off as he had just finished dinner, and closed her door.

However, Thoo continued to knock on her door. When she opened her door a second time, she saw the victim with his walking stick raised in mid-air.

At this moment, Wulandari "lost her cool" and grabbed the walking stick, trying to snatch it away from her elderly employer.

They struggled for the stick for about 20 seconds. Wulandari pushed Thoo repeatedly trying to pry the stick from his hands.

Thoo subsequently lost his balance and fell backwards onto the floor, causing him to hit the back of his head against a wall.

As a result of the impact, he suffered a 2cm laceration on the scalp and a left subdural haemorrhage.

Wulandari was arrested after Thoo's daughter reported her to the police on Mar. 13 for pushing and injuring her father.

Apologised

In her mitigation plea, Wulandari apologised for not taking good care of the elderly man, Shin Min Daily News reported.

Unrepresented in court, she asked for leniency, saying that she was aware of her wrongdoing.

The prosecutor, however, sought a sentence of nine weeks in jail.

They argued that since Wulandari was hired to take care of Thoo, she should have known that he was physically frail and vulnerable, and still she acted so rashly and endangered his safety.

Several artistes will be making their way to Singapore to perform at the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix.

This year, the race will take place from Oct. 9 to 11.

Here's the entertainment line-up you can look forward to:

Cortis

Where: Padang (Zone 4)

When: Oct. 9

DJ Snake

Where: Barge (Zone 1)

When: Oct. 9

Goo Goo Dolls

Where: Padang (Zone 4)

When: Oct. 10

Hyo

Where: Waterside (Zone 4)

When: Oct. 10

James Arthur

Where: Padang (Zone 4)

When: Oct. 11

Janet Jackson

Where: Wharf (Zone 1)

When: Oct. 11

JJ Lin

Where: Padang (Zone 4)

When: Oct. 9

Lana Del Rey

Where: Padang (Zone 4)

When: Oct. 11

Major Lazer Soundsystem

Where: Barge (Zone 1)

When: Oct. 9

Mark Ronson

Where: Barge (Zone 1)

When: Oct. 11

The Killers

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A post shared by The Killers (@thekillers)

Where: Padang (Zone 4)

When: Oct. 10

Zara Larsson

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A post shared by Zara Larsson (@zaralarsson)

Where: Padang (Zone 4)

When: Oct. 10

Other acts will also be performing, including TOKiMonsta, TeenagePop, Zhu, and more.

More details on this year's entertainment line-up is available here.

The owner of a Vietnamese restaurant in Geylang believes they have been scammed by a customer who sent a fake screenshot of a successful payment.

They shared what happened in a Facebook post on Aug. 13 to warn other business owners to be cautious of similar incidents.

The customer called the restaurant, An La Ghien, at about 5:42pm on Aug. 12 to place a takeaway order for a total of S$288.85.

According to the receipt of the order shared with Shin Min Daily News, the customer ordered fresh oysters, fried tofu, various spring rolls, a Vietnamese pancake, grilled pork cutlet, and fried chicken wings.

After the staff sent him a QR code via WhatsApp to make payment, he replied shortly after with a screenshot of the transaction in DBS iBanking, confirming the payment was successful.

The team, believing the payment had been made, prepared the order and arranged for it to be delivered to the customer's address via Lalamove.

Order not collected

According to the owner, the Lalamove driver was not able to deliver the order.

The person who lived at the address the customer provided refused the order, saying they did not order any food from the restaurant.

Both the restaurant staff and the Lalamove driver called the customer, who told them the address was correct.

The driver found this suspicious and returned the food to the restaurant.

When the staff informed the owner about the failed delivery, the owner checked the restaurant's bank account and realised that the payment of S$288.85 had not been received, they claimed.

"Despite the 'successful payment' receipt that was sent to us, no money had actually been credited to our account," the owner said.

More suspicious claims

When the owner called the customer to question him, he allegedly said that his friend had already eaten the restaurant's food, became unwell, and was waiting for an ambulance to take him to the hospital.

The owner felt that this "made absolutely no sense" because the food had never been delivered to anyone.

They asked the customer for a photo of the food to prove his claim, but he said he and his friend had already eaten it all.

When the owner threatened to report him to the police, he allegedly started to make fun of the owner, even making an inappropriate sexual remark.

The owner told Shin Min that it was the first time the restaurant had encountered a situation like this. They made a police report the following day.

In response to Mothership's queries, the police confirmed that a report was lodged, and said investigations are ongoing.

In light of the incident, the owner advised other business owners to be especially careful with large orders.

"Verify the money in your account — not just the payment screenshot," they stressed.

There will be no lantern decorations along Eu Tong Sen Street and New Bridge Road for the Mid-Autumn Festival this year.

Instead, a community lantern procession will replace the large-format street lantern displays after 24 years.

In a press release by the Chinatown Festival Committee (CFC), Chairman of the CFC Peh Cheng Hoo noted that 24 years ago at the start of the Chinatown Mid-Autumn Festival Celebration, similar celebrations and large-format lantern decorations were rare.

"Over time and through more than 700 days of street lantern decorations and festive fairs, large-format lantern decorations became a cherished tradition and are regularly seen at major attractions such as Gardens by the Bay and Jurong Lake Gardens."

He concluded: "It is therefore time to make a change to focus on the local community."

"Hope to create a new Mid-Autumn tradition"

Peh added that the CFC was "deeply grateful to our merchants, vendors and community partners

for this legacy".

"We hope to create a new Mid-Autumn tradition with our community lantern display at Kreta Ayer Square."

He noted that the street lantern decorations will continue to be presented during Chinese New Year.

Focus on community-led celebrations

The community-led celebrations are organised by the Kreta Ayer–Kim Seng Grassroots Organisations (GROs).

From Sep. 11 to Oct. 4, 2026, residents and visitors will be invited to pen their well-wishes on lanterns at designated booths in Kreta Ayer Community Club and grassroots events.

According to the press release, these lanterns will be progressively added to displays at Kreta Ayer Square and Banda Street.

The new highlight, "Light a Lantern, Share Your Blessing" celebration will commence at 6pm on Sep. 19, 2026.

It will feature a community lantern procession, a mooncake and tea appreciation session and lantern riddles presented in Singapore's four official languages.

Other activities

A Lantern Design Competition will also be held at Kreta Ayer Community Club on Sep. 19.

The festivities will also extend beyond the main celebration at Kreta Ayer Square, with three neighbourhood celebrations held at River Place, Havelock View and Chin Swee-Hong Lim.

Designed as smaller community editions of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the sessions will bring the celebration closer to residents through engagement booths, games and festival keepsakes.

For more information, check out the Kreta Ayer–Kim Seng People's Association website here.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) has clarified the number of refunds recorded since the start of the Beverage Container Return Scheme (BCRS) after previously provided figures were apparently misinterpreted.

On Aug. 5, Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Janil Puthucheary shared about the progress of the recycling scheme in response to a Parliamentary question.

"To date, the scheme has handled over one million successful transactions, with 5.5 million beverage containers returned," he said.

Under the BCRS, which launched in April, customers pay an additional 10 cents for each bottled or canned drink bearing the scheme's logo.

They can get the deposit back when they return the bottle or can to any Return Right machine installed across the country.

Incorrect interpretation

In a Facebook post on Aug. 15, NEA addressed online comments that emerged over Puthucheary's statement.

Some of these comments understood it to mean that 5.5 million containers were returned, but only the deposits of one million containers were refunded.

Such an interpretation is incorrect, NEA said.

The agency explained that consumers can return and get refunds for multiple containers in a single transaction.

Puthucheary's statement means that consumers have used Return Right machines over one million times to return a total of 5.5 million beverage containers.

Each transaction thus involved the return of 5.5 containers on average.

"With each container carrying a 10-cent deposit, around S$550,000 has been refunded," NEA said.

It underscored that "any accusations of misappropriation or corruption are therefore misplaced".

In his Aug. 5 Parliamentary statement, Puthucheary said that most transactions and returns at the Return Right machines have been successful.

He noted that a "handful of issues" have occurred, but said that the scheme operator BCRS Ltd. and the machine operators have resolved them quickly.