‘If Haze Lingers, Continue To Wear Masks’

KUCHING: Members of the public, especially children, are advised to continue wearing masks even though the Air Pollutant Index (API) readings in the state dropped yesterday.

State Health director Datu Dr Zulkifli Jantan said as long as there is haze, the people especially those with lung ailments should continue to wear masks when they go outside.

“The public should continue to scale down on outdoor activities, too,” he told The Borneo Post yesterday.

As schools resumed on Tuesday, pupils and students should also take these precautionary measures.

As at 2pm yesterday, the API reading here was 66. In Samarahan, it was 78, Miri (70), Sri Aman (67), Bintulu (63), Sarikei (56), Sibu (54), Kapit (45) and Limbang (37).

At 5pm, the API reading is as follows: Samarahan (81), Miri (70), Kuching (69), Sri Aman (65), Bintulu (63), Sibu (57), Sarikei (57) and Kapit (43).

An API reading of between 0-50 is categorised as ‘good’, moderate (51-100), unhealthy for sensitive groups (101-150), unhealthy (151-200), very unhealthy (201-300) and hazardous (greater than 300).

The highest API level ever recorded in Malaysia was 839 on Sept 23, 1997 in Kuching during the infamous 1997 Southeast Asian Haze.

The public can browse http://apims.doe.gov.my to follow up on API readings throughout the country. - BP