Haze again deteriorates in Singapore

The hazy conditions in Singapore have further deteriorated since Wednesday night, as denser haze from Sumatra has been blown in by the prevailing southerly winds, said Singapore's National Environment Agency (NEA) on Thursday.

At 8 am on Thursday, the 1-hour concentrations of PM2.5 was 96- 199g/m3, and the 3-hour PSI was 183, while the 24-hour PSI was 152- 186, in the Unhealthy range. There's a strong burning smell in the air and the visibility has significantly worsened.

A reading above 100 means that the air quality is "unhealthy," and a reading above 200 is "very unhealthy." It is considered " hazardous" if the reading hits 300.

NEA said that widespread haze is still persisting in southern and central Sumatra, with the prevailing winds expected to blow from the south-southeast or south-southwest on Thursday. Therefore, the current hazy conditions are expected to persist, and there could be a further deterioration in the air quality later in the day.

NEA said the 24-hr PSI for the next 12 hours is expected to be in the high end of the Unhealthy range and the low end of the Very Unhealthy range, and may enter the mid-section of the Very Unhealthy range if denser haze from Sumatra continues to be blown in. Endi