Man and woman living alone found dead in separate Singapore flats on same day after foul smell reported

Two individuals believed to have been living alone were found dead in separate public housing units in different parts of Singapore on 23 March 2026, after neighbours reported a strong smell emanating from the flats.

Both cases, discovered hours apart in Kim Keat Avenue and Rivervale Drive, are being treated as unnatural deaths, though authorities said preliminary investigations found no evidence of foul play.

Elderly man found in Kim Keat flat

The first case involved a 74-year-old man whose body was discovered on the morning of March 23 at Block 194 Kim Keat Avenue.

Police said they were alerted to the case of an unnatural death at about 6:50am. The man was found motionless inside a residential unit and pronounced dead at the scene.

Preliminary investigations found no indication of foul play, and investigations are ongoing.

A resident living on the same floor told Shin Min Daily News that the man had lived alone in the unit for over seven years and was rarely visited.

“We weren't familiar with him, we only greeted him occasionally,” the resident said, adding that the man went out regularly and did not appear to have mobility issues.

Middle-aged woman discovered in Rivervale Drive

In a separate case later that day, a woman believed to be middle-aged was found dead in a unit at Block 117A Rivervale Drive.

Police said they were alerted at about 3:30pm and found the woman motionless inside the flat, where she was pronounced dead. As with the earlier case, no foul play is suspected.

Neighbours told the Chinese publication that the woman had lived in the unit for a long time and had been living alone following her mother’s death.

“She used to live with her mother, but her mother passed away, and she has been living alone ever since,” neighbours said. “She doesn't usually interact with people, so no one knows her well.”

A 59-year-old neighbour living on a lower floor said he had seen the woman hanging laundry a few days earlier. He added that her flat was usually dark, though it was “unclear whether there was a power outage”.

Both cases were uncovered after neighbours detected a strong odour and alerted the authorities, suggesting the individuals may have died several days earlier.

In both incidents, police said investigations are ongoing.

Growing concern over ‘lonely deaths’

The cases come amid broader concerns over so-called “lonely deaths” in Singapore, as the country moves towards becoming a super-aged society in 2026, with more than 20 per cent of its population aged 65 and above.

Figures compiled by social service group Loving Heart from media reports and online sources such as Death Kopitiam Singapore indicate that at least 33 seniors died undetected in 2025, compared with at least 42 cases in 2024.

Authorities do not systematically track such deaths, according to a 2024 parliamentary reply.

In October 2025, Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said there were about 87,000 residents aged 65 and older living alone in 2024 — a 50 per cent increase from 58,000 in 2018.

He noted that community outreach efforts, including befriending programmes by the Silver Generation Office, grassroots volunteers and active ageing centres, are key to preventing such cases.