KL lifts emergency as haze abates

KL lifts emergency as haze abates

Jalil Hamid, Reuters, Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia lifted a state of emergency in two areas near the
capital on Saturday after air pollution levels fell well below
the danger mark, easing the country's worst pollution crisis in 8
years.

Changing winds have helped to disperse smog that has shrouded
central Malaysia for a week, dispersing smoke blown in from
forest fires in Indonesia to northern regions, officials said.

The sky over Kuala Lumpur was clear for the first time in days
and the weather bureau predicted weekend rains to further wash
away the haze that has threatened public health.

"We thank God, and this is through the effort of everybody
regardless of religion," Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi told
reporters during a visit to a pollution monitoring center near
the capital.

Badawi had urged citizens of all faiths to beg for divine
intervention to banish the haze that had grounded some flights,
disrupted shipping, and forced the closure of hundreds of
schools.

The National Security Council said pollution readings were
well below the 500-level mark which had triggered the emergency
in Kuala Selangor and Port Klang, the country's biggest port,
following choking smoke from forest fires in Indonesia.

Only 12 places in the country registered a reading classed in
the category of "unhealthy" and most of them were in the northern
states of Penang and Perak, it said.

A reading of 101-200 on the Air Pollutant Index (API) is
classed as "unhealthy", 201-300 "very unhealthy" and 300 and
above "hazardous".

The latest reading put Kuala Lumpur at 103, Port Klang at 105
and Kuala Selangor at 117, it said.

The haze moved toward northern Malaysia, but levels were not
as bad as they were earlier in the week.

Visibility at an airport in Penang, a major tourist spot and a
hub for electronics firms, dropped to 500 m (540 yards) early on
Saturday, but recovered to about 1 km (0.6 mile) by afternoon.
The airport would be shut if visibility fell below 300 m (330
yards), an airport official said. Most of Penang's electronics
exports go by air to the United States, Japan and Taiwan.

State news agency Bernama said the haze in northern Malaysia
was aggravated by rice farmers burning vegetation in preparation
for the sowing season.

Environment Minister Adenan Satem was quoted as saying by The
Star newspaper that Indonesia had sought Malaysia's help in
cloud-seeding operations to douse the fires burning on the island
of Sumatra, a short ferry ride from the west coast of peninsular
Malaysia.

Abdullah said no Malaysian companies were involved in the
fires on Sumatra, contrary to earlier reports that some Malaysian
plantation firms with operations in Indonesia might have had a
role.

As many as 7 people may have died of haze-related illness such
as breathing difficulties, the New Straits Times said, although
Malaysia's top health official, Ismail Merican, told the paper it
was too early to blame the deaths on the haze.