SINGAPORE – A woman who left a bag containing $32,000 worth of valuables on a bus earlier in July was able to get it back on the same day, thanks to the help of SBS Transit staff.

In a Facebook post on July 22, the bus operator said the commuter, identified only as K, had alighted from service 853 at a bus stop in Ang Mo Kio before realising that she had left her bag on the bus.

It contained her passport, $2,000 in cash and $30,000 worth of gold jewellery meant for her daughter’s wedding, SBS Transit said.

K then approached the SBS Transit team at the Ang Mo Kio interchange for help.

As service 853 is not operated by SBS Transit, senior assistant interchange supervisor Nithyananthan Palne contacted operator Tower Transit Singapore about the missing bag.

About 20 minutes later, Tower Transit Singapore told Palne that a fellow passenger had found the bag and handed it over to at staff at Yishun interchange.

In its post, SBS Transit said its senior interchange supervisor Alex Tan had stepped in to book and pay for K’s taxi ride to the interchange after she said that she had no money on hand.

“Two days later, both Mrs K and her daughter called to thank us and even extended an invitation to the wedding in Kuala Lumpur,” Palne recounted in the Facebook post.

K also dropped by Ang Mo Kio interchange a week later to thank Palne and Tan in person, as well as reimburse Tan for the taxi fare.

K, in her letter of appreciation to SBS Transit shared with the post, also thanked the staff for their “professionalism, dedication, compassion and unwavering support throughout the incident”.

Many netizens were heartened by the gesture, with some praising the staff for their actions in the comments.

“Great work! Kudos for such kind and quick actions,” said Facebook user Jeremy Liew.