elef Posted October 7, 2006 Report Share Posted October 7, 2006 Bangkok Post Today Link UPDATE: Singapore air 'very unhealthy' Singapore (dpa) - Singapore's air quality plunged into the "very unhealthy" range on Saturday as a thick smokey haze from Indonesia's raging forest fires blanketed the city-state. "People should stay indoors," said a spokeswoman answering the National Environment Agency's (NEA's) hotline, with the Pollutants Standard Index (PSI) reading 130 at mid-morning and 115 at noon. The all-time high was 226 in 1997. The NEA advised residents with existing heart or respiratory ailments to reduce physical exertion and outdoor activity. The NEA started issuing updates every hour instead of once every 24 hours. Air quality is considered moderate when the PSI is between 50 and 100. More than 100 is unhealthy, while 50 and below is considered good. Childcare centres were keeping their tots indoors with the windows closed and the air conditioning turned on. The reading on Saturday was a marked deterioration from the 80 posted on Friday to the 101 reading at 8am (local time). "I could hardly breathe when I started work this morning," said a 44-year-old taxi driver. "What can I do? I have to drive.". Southwestern winds have carried the acrid smoke from burning forests for land-clearing on Indonesia's Jambi, Riau and South Sumatra to Singapore and Malaysia. Motorists complained of greatly reduced visibility and the occurrence of the haze year-after-year from illegal clearing. In Sri Aman in Sarawak, Malaysia's worst hit area, the Air Pollutant Index, hit 221, the "very unhealthy range," and a spate of communities in East Malaysia and the west coast posted levels over 100. Schools have been closed in the worst areas of Kalimantan in Indonesia while residents have been afflicted with respiratory problems, nausea and headaches. Singapore is sending satellite images of the hot-spot locations to Indonesian authorities to assist them in battling the fires. Latest satellite pictures showed 506 hot spots. In addition to Singapore, the NEA said the prevailing winds are also transporting the haze towards the Malacca Straits, one of the world's busiest waterways, and peninsular Malaysia. Singapore has offered to send aircraft to help with cloud-seeding, but the weather is currently too dry to use this technique effectively, meteorologists said. NEA head of pollution control Joseph Hui said the inter-monsoon season should hit Indonesia by the middle of this month. "The inter-monsoon will set in and that will bring along with it rains," Hui said. "These rains will then douse out the fires." In 1997, the PSI from the fires hit an all-time high of 226 smothering parts of Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand as well as Indonesia, prompting a health crisis in those countries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neo Posted October 7, 2006 Report Share Posted October 7, 2006 Is there any hope at all that seasonal burning of the forests will end in our lifetimes, particularly Thailand who does it as well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torneyboy Posted October 7, 2006 Report Share Posted October 7, 2006 And Indonesia.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cavanami Posted October 8, 2006 Report Share Posted October 8, 2006 Indonesia literaly chokes Malaysia with all the burning this time of the year! Every year, same thing. I would expect that Malaysia would ask that this practice be stopped???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nervous_Dog Posted October 8, 2006 Report Share Posted October 8, 2006 Malaysia does and often, Indonesia shrgus it's shoulders and says, what fires, where? Was aweful a year ago in KL, really really bad, DOG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jxxxl Posted October 8, 2006 Report Share Posted October 8, 2006 It got really bad here in Singapore on Friday night. I remember going out and seeing smoke hanging in the air just like the fire was close by. You can smell it too, it's quite heavy. In Chiang Mai, the burning season is really bad as well and it happens every year. I've heard the hazard to one's health of living long in these conditions is significant. I'm not sure what Singapore can do about this, seems like a no win situation. At least Thailand can try to control it if they choose to. I remember in Singapore in 1997, foreign firms were shipping expats' families out because the air was so bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samak Posted October 8, 2006 Report Share Posted October 8, 2006 what Singapore can do against smoke and haze from Malysia and Indonesia? tougher Visa regulations as the Thais are doing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torneyboy Posted October 8, 2006 Report Share Posted October 8, 2006 Indonesia literaly chokes Malaysia with all the burning this time of the year!Every year, same thing. I would expect that Malaysia would ask that this practice be stopped???? Ask yes...will they is the problem.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asiafun Posted October 8, 2006 Report Share Posted October 8, 2006 Everyone has been asking the Indonesians to knock off the practice. I believe it was even brought up in an Asean forum a couple of years back when it was really bad but the Indo's don't give a damn about their neighbors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torneyboy Posted October 8, 2006 Report Share Posted October 8, 2006 we try to get them to stop...but a slap on the wrist for our *bigger*neighbour is all that happens... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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