KOTA KINABALU: There is little let-up in the haze situation in most parts of Sabah, with five major areas in the state as well as Labuan recording unhealthy air conditions.
Kota Kinabalu remained the worst hit, with two Air Pollutant Index stations recording unhealthy levels of 184 and 179 at noon Wednesday (Sept 2).
Labuan also remained at unhealthy levels, recording 179 as southeasterly winds carry air pollutants from forest fires, open burning and peat soil fires continuing in neighbouring Kalimantan.
Sabah’s interior Keningau recorded 176, while Kimanis station between the state’s west coast districts of Beaufort and Papar, recorded 175.
East coast Sandakan, which was recording moderate API below 100, saw it rise to an unhealthy level of 151.
However, there was a slight improvement for Tawau, which sits along the northern Kalimantan border, with 108 on Tuesday (Sept 2), a drop from slightly over 150 recorded on Monday (Sept 1).
API readings between 101 and 200 are considered unhealthy, 201 to 300 very unhealthy and above 300 hazardous.
Sabah Department of Environment director Nor Rashidah Mohd Ghazali said on Monday (Aug 31) that there were no hotspots in Sabah reported by the Singapore-based Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC).
She said that analysis using satellite images from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) 20 found that no hotspots were detected in Sabah.
The report recorded 253 hotspots in Kalimantan and 63 in Sumatera as of Aug 31.
