Haze over Singapore gets worse
City state demands action from Indonesia over raging forest fires
Singapore urged people to remain indoors amid unprecedented levels of air pollution on Thursday as a smoky haze wrought by forest fires in neighbouring Indonesia worsened dramatically. Nearby Malaysia closed 200 schools and banned open burning in some areas.
The Pollutant Standards Index, Singapore’s main measure for air pollution, surged to a record reading of 371, breaching the “hazardous” classification that can aggravate respiratory ailments. The previous all-time high before this week was in 1997, when the index reached 226.
Smog fuelled by raging Indonesian blazes has hit Singapore and Malaysia many times, often in the middle of the year, but the severity of this week’s conditions has strained diplomatic ties. Officials in Singapore say Jakarta must do more to halt fires on Sumatra island started by plantation owners and farmers to clear land cheaply.
“This is now the worst haze that Singapore has ever faced,” Singapore’s Environment Minister Vivian Balakrishnan wrote on his Facebook page. “No country or corporation has the right to pollute the air at the expense of Singaporeans’ health and wellbeing.”
The haze has posed numerous inconveniences for Singaporeans, some of whom complained of coughs and covered their faces with handkerchiefs while walking outdoors. Flight controllers at Singapore’s Changi Airport were instructed to take precautions because of lower visibility, while McDonald’s said it was temporarily halting delivery service to protect its workers’ health.
