Sarawak air quality hits 475 as Indonesia smoke chokes Malaysia
Why it matters: Sarawak is preparing for a possible emergency, while Indonesia says 13,500 people were treated for respiratory infections in July and August.
Hazardous haze worsened in Malaysia on Monday, with Sarawak's Serian district recording an Air Pollutant Index of 475 as smoke from fires in Indonesia spread across the region. Samarahan, Sri Aman and Kuching also topped 300, the level Malaysia classifies as hazardous, while several other areas in Sabah, Labuan, Penang, Kedah and Perak posted unhealthy readings. Malaysia's environment department cited 324 hotspots in Kalimantan and 42 in Sumatra, versus two in Malaysia. In Indonesia, authorities stepped up cloud seeding and water bombing, saying more than 5 million people in Borneo and Sumatra faced haze exposure and 13,500 people were treated for respiratory infections in July and August.
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Earlier in this story
- 1 hour agoOrangutan weakened by wildfire smoke evacuated in Ketapang
- 3 hours agoSarawak air quality hits 475 as Indonesia smoke chokes Malaysiareading now
- 4 hours agoKalimantan Tengah hot spots rise to 4,359, 7,634 hectares burned
- 12 hours agoKarhutla in Ketapang Weakens Orangutan, BKSDA Evacuates It
- 38 hours agoPneumonia cases in Pontianak rise 10-20% as haze thickens
- Aug 29Pontianak sees 300 ARI cases a day, oxygen rooms opened
- Aug 29Smoke from forest fires makes Jambi air unhealthy, fires persist
- Aug 28Forest-fire smoke pushes Palangka Raya, Banjarbaru air to dangerous