PETALING JAYA: The hot and dry weather will likely prolong the haze situation in Malaysia while the number of hot spots is expected to increase within the next few weeks, according to the Meteorological Department.
Its spokesman Dr Hisham Mohd Anip said the increase in the number of hot spots in Sumatra and the change in monsoon winds are likely to bring a hazier situation to Peninsular Malaysia.
“There is a possibility the haze will be worse than that early this year due to the movement of the wind from Indonesia.
“The wind below the upper atmosphere is a bit slow and the haze will move slowly,” he said yesterday.
The Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre reported 116 hot spots detected by US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite images in Sumatra on Sunday, and the number increased to 129 a day later.
Fifteen additional hot spots were detected in Peninsular Malaysia, three in Sabah and five in Sarawak.
Dr Hisham said there could be scattered showers in the middle of next week, which could reduce the impact of the haze.
Meanwhile, the air quality in Banting reached unhealthy levels yesterday while several other areas in Selangor recording increasingly deteriorating air quality.
The Air Pollutant Index (API) for Banting hovered from 113 to 121 from noon and by 3pm it was at 125.
Port Dickson recorded readings in the moderate range earlier but passed the unhealthy mark (100) at 8am. It reached 107 at 3pm.
Klang, Batu Muda, Cheras and Putrajaya also showed recordings above 100 at 3pm.
An API of between 51 and 100 is considered moderate, 101-200 unhealthy, 200-300 very unhealthy and 300 and above hazardous.
