Air quality to improve, mercury set to drop

A man wearing a mask checks his cellphone yesterday in Shanghai.

The air quality is expected to be better today but a cold front will lead to a drop in temperature, forecasters said yesterday.

Heavy air pollution shrouded the city yesterday morning. The air quality index soared to 285 at 11am.

The heavy pollution started on Tuesday night and lasted for 11 consecutive hours, with the PM2.5 the major pollutant.

The concentration of PM2.5 soared to nearly 240 micrograms per cubic meter at 11am, triple the figure the state considers safe for humans.

The World Health Organization’s recommended maximum is 25.

The Shanghai Meteorological Bureau issued a yellow haze alert, the lowest of three levels, at 8:48am. It was the first time that the bureau issued a haze alert since Shanghai entered autumn on October 4.

The air quality index dropped gradually in the afternoon and reached 93 by 6pm thanks to a cold front brought by strong winds. The air quality index will range between 60 and 80 today.

The cold front is expected to bring the temperature down to a low of 9 degrees Celsius in downtown areas today, forecasters said. Tomorrow, the temperature will dip to a low of 8 degrees. Both today and tomorrow will be sunny and cloudy. Showers are expected on the weekend, weathermen said.