East Coast Park — the amber beacon's pontiaanak and the toyol sighting

East Coast Park, one of Singapore's most popular recreational beaches, became the centre of a supernatural controversy in 1990 when a young couple reported an encounter with a pontianak (vampire-like female spirit) near the park's Amber Beacon at night. The couple described seeing a woman in white with long, dark hair who flew toward them from the trees, emitting the pontianak's characteristic high-pitched shriek. Their account, widely reported in Singapore's media, reignited public discussion about the supernatural entities believed to inhabit Singapore's remaining forested areas. Other visitors to East Coast Park have reported seeing a toyol — a mischievous child-spirit from Malay folklore, described as a small, greenish creature that steals valuables — near the playground areas. The park, which stretches along Singapore's southeastern coast and includes areas of dense coastal vegetation, provides one of the few natural settings in the highly urbanized city-state where traditional supernatural entities might be encountered. Singapore's government has never officially commented on the supernatural reports, but the 1990 incident remains one of the most well-known ghost encounters in Singaporean popular culture.