Haze from RI fires spreads to Malaysia

Haze from RI fires spreads to Malaysia

MALAYSIA: A thick haze shrouding Malaysia's tourist island of
Penang and caused by fires in neighboring Indonesia has spread to
the mainland, meteorological officials said on Monday.

Air quality levels in several towns on mainland Malaysia,
across from Penang and extending into northern Perak state, were
officially unhealthy, a meteorological official in the Kuala
Lumpur bureau told AFP.

An unhealthy reading means the air is likely to irritate eyes
or cause sneezing and coughing, and may worsen chronic heart or
lung ailments.

Visibility in Prai township was down to three kilometers from
a normal 10 kilometers, the department said on its website.

The deterioration in air quality was mainly due to the
increase of "hot spots" or burning areas on the Indonesian island
of Sumatra, the meteorological authority said. -- AFP