Indonesia haze drives 148 hot spots in Sarawak

Haze from forest and land fires in Indonesia has worsened air quality in Sarawak, Malaysia, with 148 hot spots detected from Aug. 1-19. The Sarawak Natural Resources and Environment Board said conditions could deteriorate further because of a prolonged dry spell. The ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre detected moderate to thick smoke in West Kalimantan, which was then carried by winds to western Sarawak. On Thursday morning, nine districts in Sarawak recorded unhealthy air pollution levels: Kuching, Samarahan, Serian, Sri Aman, Sarikei, Sibu, Lundu, Tebedu, and Lubok Antu, with API readings of 101 to 185. In Indonesia, BMKG Pekanbaru detected 733 hot spots in Sumatra on Aug. 21, while other reports said more than 5,000 hot spots were found in Kalimantan.