Haze emergency grips Sarawak town
Malaysia declared a state of emergency in Sarawak state's Serian district on Borneo island on Friday, after air pollution readings reached critical levels.
A state of emergency has been declared in the Sarawak district of Serian, Malaysia, due to hazardous air pollution levels. The smoke, originating from transboundary haze caused by Indonesian forest fires, has been particularly severe in the area, enveloping homes and businesses. Air quality readings reached critical levels, with the API index peaking at 512, well above the hazardous threshold of 300 set by Malaysian guidelines.
The haze has forced residents to modify their daily routines, limiting travel to essential errands and resulting in diminished crowds at local markets. The emergency has also led to the closure of approximately 647 schools in the district until the end of the week. Despite some rain on Friday and Saturday that brought temporary relief, the state of emergency remains in effect.
Written by urgent.news from The Jakarta Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
