Showing posts with label Haze. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Haze. Show all posts

Friday, 23 October 2015

South Thailand worst haze


Health of locals threatened as particulate matter far exceeds safe level; Flight to Trang and Krabi hit ; Indonesia apologetic.

 THE WORST haze crisis in 17 years hit Songkhla’s Hat Yai district hard yesterday, with the amount of PM10 particles far exceeding the safe level.

As of yesterday, the amount of particulate matter (PM) of up to 10 microns in size (PM10) reached 369.0 micrograms per cubic metre of air in Hat Yai, the economic hub of Thailand's South.

People are considered safe only when the PM10 does not rise above 120 micrograms.

In 1998, the PM10 in Songkhla skyrocketed to 459.5 micrograms per cubic metre of air. Locals had hoped that such a seriously hazy situation would never recur.


But yesterday, although the PM10 did not yet beat the previous record, air pollutants were clearly visible in Hat Yai, even to the naked eye. The problem is widely blamed on Indonesia's forest fires.

Officials in Songkhla province were busy handing out facial masks to help locals cope with the health impacts.

Government Spokesman Maj-General Sansern Kaewkamnerd said Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-ocha had already instructed family-medicine teams to visit affected people.

"People need to get proper healthcare," he said, "They also need to get advice. For example, they should avoid staying outdoors with the haze raging on. If they develop tightness in the chest or have difficulty breathing, they should immediately seek medical help".

According to Sansern, the prime minister is very concerned about the haze, which has blanketed Thailand's South. All relevant authorities are now ordered to closely monitor the situation and extend help to people.

"Local administrative bodies, on their part, can help ease the pollution by spraying water in the air," the government spokesman said.


Sansern said the government has already contacted Indonesia about the haze, and Indonesia said it was sorry about the pollution caused.

Yesterday, haze was also a major problem in at least five other southern provinces: Satun struggled with a PM10 of 276 micrograms; Pattani with PM10 211 micrograms; Surat Thani with PM10 of 187 micrograms; Yala with PM10 of 172 micrograms; and Narathiwat with PM10 of 123 micrograms.

As haze significantly reduced visibility, flight services to and from Thailand's South have been affected.

Executives of schools in Songkhla are now allowed to decide whether temporary closure is necessary should the PM10 rise above 350 micrograms.

So far, Songkhla has not been declared a disaster-hit zone as authorities are worried that such a declaration may affect local tourism.

Halem J Marigan, director of the Regional Environmental Office 16 (Songkhla), yesterday evening said there were signs of improvement.


"The average PM10 amount during the past 24 hours has finally reduced. It dropped from 369 to 365 micrograms per cubic metre of air if we concluded the measurement at 4pm Thursday," he said.

He believed stronger winds had benefited Thailand, as the haze was pushed away faster.

In Surat Thani, several flights to Samui Airport were delayed yesterday because of the haze.

"Many flights could not land in the morning. They had to wait until the afternoon," said Surat Thani Governor Wongsiri Promchana.

He said he had also advised locals to turn on the headlights of their vehicles when driving in hazy areas.

Wongsiri said all tourist attractions were still open as normal as of now.

Flight services in the southern provinces of Trang and Krabi are also affected.

In Trang, locals yesterday urged relevant authorities to help tackle the haze problem that had recurred every now and then.

"It has affected us adversely. I feel uncomfortable because the haze has made it hard for me to breathe," Areerat Boonprasert, 52, said. 

Source: The Nation

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Friday, 9 October 2015

Haze hits Phuket tourism


Thailand offers to help Indonesia as annual fires cause flight delays

THE PROLONGED haze is hitting Phuket's tourism hard, with tourist operators on the island complaining about flight delays and holiday cancellations.

The problem stems from agricultural fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan in Indonesia.

Foreign Affairs Ministry deputy permanent secretary Vitavas Srivihok met with Indonesian Ambassador Lutfi Rauf yesterday to discuss the issue. 


Vitavas said Lutfi said he was sorry and explained the Indonesian government was now taking harsh legal action against those behind the fires.

"During the meeting we told the ambassador that Thailand is ready to provide assistance," he said.

Lutfi said the Indonesian government was trying its best to extinguish the fires.

"The Indonesian authorities are applying many measures to put out the fire as our first priority," the ambassador said. 


"We have been irrigating water to the burning peatland, making artificial rain and also water bombing the fire from above. More than 8,000 military personnel were called to the fire-extinguish operation."

He said there were 184 fire cases and 223 individuals and companies are involved in them, with 78 suspects detained.

"We are working with international partners especially within the Asean framework to relieve the haze situation," he said. 


"We have already received some help from Malaysia and Singapore, but we need to make sure that the help from outside meets the needs on the field, otherwise the help will be useless." He said Thailand offered help Indonesia and asked what help it needed.

The Indonesian government was very appreciate of the offer and he would pass it on to Jakarta.

Lutfi said Indonesian authorities were seeking more and bigger aircraft to carry out the water bombing. The aircraft should be able to carry more than 25 tons of water.


At least three flights from Phuket to Bangkok were delayed yesterday morning due to the thick haze that affected visibility at Phuket International Airport.

All the flights were scheduled to depart Phuket before 8.20am, said an airport officer who joined an emergency meeting chaired by the provincial governor. The affected carriers were Bangkok Airways, Thai AirAsia and Thai Airways International.

The haze also affected a Silk Air international flight and a Jet Star international flight, with both having to circle the airport two extra times before being allowed to land.

Bangkok Airways has advised its passengers to contact its call centre on 1771 to check the status of flights especially those flights departing the South of Thailand and travelling to the South.

At 8am yesterday, an air-quality check showed the amount of particulate matter up to 10 microns in size had reached 210 micrograms in the Phuket city municipal area. The safe limit is 120 micrograms. 


Kannapat Wongtikied, who runs the Phuket Sunny Hostel in Muang district, said about 20 per cent of room reservations had been cancelled in the wake of the haze.

"Several guests here have also cancelled their one-day trip-tour package. My business income has been falling by about 60 per cent," she said. She said some guests cut short their stay.

"One couple initially booked seven nights but they left for Myanmar after just two nights because of the haze," Kannapat said.

Auraiwan Phuthong, who runs the Phong Phang restaurant in the same district, said she handed out masks to her employees and her customers to help them cope with the haze.

"The number of customers has significantly dwindled. My income has dropped by about 30 per cent already," she said.

Phuket resident Phongpol Ratchapol said he wore a facial mask when outside, while locals plan to rally in front of the Phuket City Hall today and lodge a protest letter against the Indonesian government.

Suratin Lian-udom, a former mayor of Tambon Rassada Municipality, will reportedly lead the rally.

Source: The Nation

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