KUCHING: While schools in haze-hit states in the peninsular have reopened, those in Kuching and Samarahan divisions in Sarawak have been told to close on Thursday as the air quality hovers near the very unhealthy level.
"Effective this morning, schools in Kuching, Samarahan, Padawan, Lundu and Bau are advised to close because the API reading is nearly 200 - the very unhealthy level," the state Education Department said in a statement Thursday.
It added that the schools were being contacted to inform parents to bring their children home.
The Air Pollutant Index (API) for Samarahan showed 195 as at 7am.
In Kuching it was 196, Kapit 138, Sarikei 117, Sri Aman 127 and Sibu 110.
An API of 100 to 200 is considered unhealthy.
Schools in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, Negri Sembilan and Malacca, which were told to close on Tuesday, reopened on Thursday after API readings fall to the lower end of the unhealthy zone.
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