Project - Fort Serapong Archeological Dig, 4th November 2006 (PRIVATE ALBUM)

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At the request of an archeologist from the National University of Singapore, I joined him at one of his dig sites to look over the structures under investigation, with the intention to possibly produce and submit a visual inspection report on the structural integrity of the fort as part of his impact assessment paper to the Sentosa Development Corporation for restoration and development. Along with us was a group of students from the SIM and NUS universities. Quite a pleasant way to spend a nice morning climbing through the jungle and abandoned structures with a bunch of pretty young undergraduate co-eds.

Fort Serapong is on the highest peak of Sentosa Island and was first built in the 1870s in response to an expected threat from Tsarist Russia just after the end of the Crimean war, rebuilt again in the 1930s and was finally abandoned when the Japanese overran the British Garrison on Singapore.

Besides the fort, there is also another abandoned complex sited amongst the buildings of the fort, which was built ca. 1950s and abandoned not long after. They believe it was built and maintained by a religious cult as they have identified sleeping quarters, gathering halls, communal toilets and a chapel in the mix of collapsing buildings, but until today, they have yet to identify who or what kind of people they were, or why these buildings were abandoned, or even what religious activity was carried out here hidden from prying eyes.

In the final pictures taken deep underground is a command bunker which goes down 4 stories below the hill. As this was a cursory visit to get a feel of the site and because of the SIM and NUS students on the tour of the dig site some of whom were in rather inappropriate short skirts, we didn't go beyond the trapdoor in the floor. If they proceed to engage me for the structural assessment, at the next visit we will be descending into the lower levels to assess the state of the structure. This area has just recently been opened and they have found everything intact, preserved exactly at the moment of abandonment, with a few coins, monopoly pieces, odds and ends etc. scattered about. They have also found and handed over to the army, quite a few unexploded ordinances like landmines, 6 and 8 inch shells as well as rifle shells.