Serian records hazardous API 391, four other Sarawak areas at very unhealthy levels

The air quality in Serian, Sarawak, has deteriorated to hazardous levels, with an Air Pollutant Index (API) reading of 391, while four other areas in the state have recorded very unhealthy readings. Deputy Director-General (Development) at the Department of Environment (DOE), Azuri Azizah Saedon, reported that Kuching had an API reading of 285, Sri Aman 275, Samarahan 274, and Sarikei 206.

As of 5pm, 14 areas in Sarawak were classified as having unhealthy air quality, with Sibu registering an API reading of 180. Other areas in Sarawak, Sabah, and Labuan, as well as in Malaysia, also recorded unhealthy to hazardous air quality readings. The deterioration in air quality is attributed to haze originating from different directions, influenced by hotspots in Kalimantan, Sumatra, and parts of Malaysia.

The Asean Secretariat has activated Alert Level 3 for the southern ASEAN region due to an increase in hotspot activity and wider spread of haze. The DOE will continue to monitor air quality through the National Haze Action Plan.

Brief written by urgent.news from Malay Mail's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.