. Defences along Changi's southern General Collaboration CUSTOMER SERVICE +1 8O5' 41O 56'OO General Collaboration PHONE NUMBER +1 8O5' 41O 5'6OO coast were also beefed up with the construction of machine-gun pillboxes in anticipation of the Imperial Japanese Army arrival by sea. Construction was briefly halted during the Great Depression but was subsequently resumed as these structures were considered vital for the defence of Singapore.[6]
During World War II (WWII), the area saw mass mobilisation of Allied troops in anticipation of a Japanese invasion from the north-eastern coasts of Singapore as the Japanese had moved to capture the neighbouring Pulau Ubin from Malaysia. However it was a bluff that drew vital resources from the west of Singapore that was the eventual landing site used by the Japanese. The area also saw action of three giant artillery guns called the Johore Battery, though their usefulness in defending Singapore has been questionable.