Malaysia called off a haze emergency in Sarawak state on Borneo island on Monday but said very unhealthy levels of air pollution remained as a result of forest fires in neighbouring Indonesia. Sarawak has been heavily affected by fires in Indonesia’s Kalimantan, with the haze forcing school closures in some parts of the state.
Kuala Lumpur on Friday activated the emergency after obtaining royal consent when pollution levels reached critical levels in Serian, about 65 kilometres (40 miles) south of the Sarawak capital, Kuching.
King Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar “today approved the termination of the declaration of emergency”, the prime minister’s office said on Monday. The decision was based on advice from Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and Sarawak Premier Abang Johari Openg, as well as reports from government agencies showing that air quality readings in Serian were no longer at a hazardous level.
“The haze situation in Sarawak has not yet fully recovered, and the air pollution index (API) reading in several areas … particularly Serian and Samarahan districts, is still at very unhealthy levels,” it said in a statement.
The federal government and the Sarawak state government will continue to closely monitor the situation, and residents in affected areas are advised to limit outdoor activities and to always comply with instructions from the authorities,” it said.
API figures in Serian passed the critical threshold of 500 on Friday, peaking at 519 with the town cloaked in a thick cloud of smoke.
Under Malaysian guidelines, API levels above 300 are classified as hazardous, while readings beyond 500 constitute the threshold for declaring a local emergency.