531 hotspots in Sumatra, 40ha burning in Dengkil The STAR: Sunday August 3, 2008
KUALA LUMPUR: It's that time of the year again. It's the dry spell, the haze is coming back and the number of hotspots in Sumatra has jumped from 351 to 531 within 24 hours.
To make things worse, a 40ha peat forest has been burning for the last two days. And the weather is expected to stay dry for the next three days.
The Malaysia Meteorological Department said satellite images showed 531 hotspots over Sumatra as at 2.30pm yesterday.
According to the Department of Environment, the intensity of the haze would depend on the wind strength.
For now, Port Klang is the only area with an unhealthy API reading of 104 (a reading of 101 to 200 is considered unhealthy). Petaling Jaya and Kuala Lumpur recorded moderate readings of 57 and 61 respectively.
Haze has been a perennial problem for Malaysia because of slash-and-burn activities practised by farmers in Indonesia.
The fire in Putrajaya could make things worse this year. Over 40ha of agriculture land at the 24th kilometre of the Elite Highway near the KL International Airport has been on fire for the last two days.
Sepang Kuala Langat fire chief Supt Sharikan Bustaman said the fire was burning beneath and above ground and the dry season had made matters worse.
About 70 firemen from nearby stations are fighting to put out the fire at the area, which is part of the Kuala Langat Forest Reserve.
To make things worse, a 40ha peat forest has been burning for the last two days. And the weather is expected to stay dry for the next three days.
The Malaysia Meteorological Department said satellite images showed 531 hotspots over Sumatra as at 2.30pm yesterday.
According to the Department of Environment, the intensity of the haze would depend on the wind strength.
For now, Port Klang is the only area with an unhealthy API reading of 104 (a reading of 101 to 200 is considered unhealthy). Petaling Jaya and Kuala Lumpur recorded moderate readings of 57 and 61 respectively.
Haze has been a perennial problem for Malaysia because of slash-and-burn activities practised by farmers in Indonesia.
The fire in Putrajaya could make things worse this year. Over 40ha of agriculture land at the 24th kilometre of the Elite Highway near the KL International Airport has been on fire for the last two days.
Sepang Kuala Langat fire chief Supt Sharikan Bustaman said the fire was burning beneath and above ground and the dry season had made matters worse.
About 70 firemen from nearby stations are fighting to put out the fire at the area, which is part of the Kuala Langat Forest Reserve.
1 comment:
Dengkil ?!? That's like a hop away from my workplace. AIEEEEE!! Fire, go away! =p
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