Malaysia declares haze emergency in two areas

Malaysia declares haze emergency in two areas

Bazuki Muhammad, Reuters/Port Klang, Malaysia

Malaysia declared an emergency near its capital on Thursday as
acrid haze from Indonesian forest fires drove air pollution
readings into the danger zone, forcing a brief closure of its
biggest port.

Peninsular Malaysia faces its worst pollution crisis in eight
years. Choking haze from forest fires on Sumatra island is
threatening public health, disrupting transport and stoking fears
for the economy.

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak told a news conference in
the capital the government was doing everything possible to deal
with the problem.

In Teluk Nipah, a village near Port Klang, 70 kilometers west
of the capital, schools were closed and the haze hid objects more
than 200 meters distant.

"I have had fewer customers since last week," said Rani Talib,
33, the owner of a street hawker stall. Five customers eating
dishes of chicken and rice all wore facemasks.

"My doctor gave me medical leave for two days," said Muzamil
Olel, 32. "I have a sore throat and a headache."

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi declared an emergency for
the areas of Kuala Selangor, a fishing and agricultural town, and
Port Klang, the country's biggest port, where pollution hit
levels considered hazardous.

Both places are in Selangor, Malaysia's wealthiest and most-
densely populated state, which surrounds the capital. Schools in
Selangor would be closed for the rest of this week, state Chief
Minister Khir Toyo said.

In an emergency, the government can order the closure of state
and private-sector offices, although establishments offering
essential services, such as markets, clinics and hospitals, will
stay open.

The government can also limit the use of private vehicles and
ban open bonfires, but haze emergencies do not involve curfews or
handing power to the police or military, officials said.

Malaysia has offered to help fight the fires on Sumatra, and
its environment and commodities ministers flew to the island to
meet Indonesia's forestry minister and officials from Jakarta's
environment ministry.

State news agency Bernama said the Malaysian plan covered
three aspects -- putting out fires, inducing rain through cloud-
seeding, and long-term plans to prevent a recurrence.

On his return, Malaysian Environment Minister Adenan Satem
told reporters the Indonesian response to the plan had been
positive. "The ministers will discuss this with various local
governments in Sumatra," he added.

Najib told the same news conference Malaysia would deploy 125
firemen and rescuers to Sumatra, along with five fire vehicles.
"They will leave any time, once we get clearance from Indonesia."

Haze at Port Klang halted cargo-handling operations for two
hours, but they resumed by late afternoon after visibility
improved, a spokeswoman said. "We will continue to monitor the
situation," she added.

An airport on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur closed as
visibility fell below 300 meters, grounding many small government
and private jets that use it.

The pollution crisis is the worst since 1997, when smoke
mainly from Indonesian forest fires blocked out skies across
Southeast Asia.

Fires on Sumatra, close to Malaysia's west coast, flare up
around this time each year as farmers, plantation owners and
miners burn forests to clear land during the dry season.

But health authorities say the smog has reached dangerous
levels, and asthma attacks have soared.

The pollution index had fallen slightly by Thursday evening to
stand at 295 in Kuala Lumpur and 486 in Port Klang, below the 500
level that triggered the emergency, although in Kuala Selangor it
was at 527, the environment ministry said on its website.

Readings of between 0 and 50 are considered to be good and 50-
100 moderate.

Abdullah has given environmental officials permission to
automatically declare an emergency once the pollution index
breaks through 500 rather than having to wait for the prime
minister's approval, Bernama reported.

The haze has also hit the stock market, dragging down shares
in the airport, airlines and tourism industries.