Malaysia declares emergency in Sarawak town as haze reaches critical level

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysia declared an emergency in a town in Sarawak state on Borneo Island on Friday after air pollution surpassed the country's emergency-level threshold due to fires in neighboring Indonesia. The Air Pollutant Index in Serian, a small agricultural town near the border of Indonesia’s Kalimantan province, reached 521, according to Malaysia’s environment department.

Sarawak’s larger capital, Kuching, also recorded a hazardous reading of 311. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s office announced the declaration of an emergency in Serian to facilitate more effective measures, though it did not specify the measures. A reading above 500 could lead to the suspension of nonessential work and outdoor activities.

Schools are already closed if the index exceeds 200. Haze is an annual issue in Southeast Asia, with smoke from forest and peat fires in Indonesia drifting across borders and impacting Malaysia, Brunei, and Singapore. Sarawak has been the most affected Malaysian state by the haze, with several areas experiencing hazardous air levels in recent days.

The haze this year has been particularly severe, with heightened fire activity in several Indonesian provinces, including Kalimantan, and prolonged dry conditions exacerbating pollution across parts of Borneo. Indonesian Forestry Ministry satellite data from Friday detected 717 hot spots across the nation, likely caused by forest fires since Aug. 1, with 103 active hot spots in the past 24 hours alone.