SINGAPORE — A heavy downpour accompanied by strong winds that lasted for more than two hours yesterday left a trail of fallen tree branches strewn over roads and pavements, even stalling traffic briefly on some expressways.

Flash floods were reported on some roads, such as Bassein Road, Mackenzie Road and Kramat Lane, although these remained passable to traffic, said national water agency PUB.

A PUB spokesperson said the flash floods were due to intense rain, which overwhelmed the drainage systems in these areas.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) sent an advisory before noon about strong winds and thundery showers. Within an hour, the PUB warned of a high risk of flooding at the area bounded by Tampines Road and Jalan Teliti as water levels in the drains and canals came close to overflowing. The warning was withdrawn minutes later, however, as the water level eased to 90 per cent of the drainage capacity.

As the storm raged on, the PUB started reporting flash floods from around 3pm at Bassein Road near Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Mackenzie Road near Little India and Kramat Lane behind Concorde Hotel Singapore. However, none of these flash floods lasted beyond 25 minutes.

In the Jurong West and Punggol neighbourhoods, residents reported broken, heavy tree branches as well as leaves being strewn across pedestrian walkways and road lanes, causing traffic to be obstructed — including access to a car park along Punggol Drive.

There were also four cases of road obstructions on the Tampines Expressway and one case on the Central Expressway due to fallen tree branches, the Land Transport Authority said, although these were cleared by 4.30pm yesterday. The heaviest rainfall was recorded in Handy Road at 95.4mm, said the PUB.

Reiterating its flood prevention efforts, the PUB spokesperson added that the existing culvert — a structure that allows water to flow under a road — at the downstream junction of Mackenzie Road and Bukit Timah Road will be upgraded along with the construction of Stage 2 of the Downtown MRT Line. Work to deepen and widen the existing culvert in Bassein Road will also commence later this year.

She also said the PUB had started to strengthen flood protection measures at the Stamford Canal Catchment, which covers the Orchard Road shopping belt, including Kramat Lane — with an expected completion date in 2017.

Based on the three-day weather outlook on the NEA website, thundery showers can be expected in the morning mainly over southern, eastern and western Singapore tomorrow.