Batam may escape the haze, says Indon agency

JAKARTA: The country’s meteorology agency predicts that hot spots in Riau and Kalimantan causing haze will not affect Batam because of the wind direction.

Last year, haze blanketed Batam in Riau Islands. Hang Nadim International Airport, for example, lost 1.5 billion rupiah (US$113,000) because of flight disruptions caused by the haze.

The head of the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) station in Batam, Philips Mustamu, told The Jakarta Post on Sunday that haze from hot spots in Riau and Kalimantan was unlikely to reach Batam. BMKG data showed that wind in Riau Islands province, a different province from Riau, came from the southeast and south.

The BMKG said, however, that haze from hot spots in Riau had blanketed Singapore, which is 20km north of Batam. The agency said Singapore was closer to the source of haze than Batam.

Hang Nadim airports general manager said traffic at the airport remained normal.

Haze is reported to have disrupted flights in Dumai, Riau province, and has started to affect residents in Pontianak, West Kalimantan. — Asia News Network/ The Jakarta Post