KUALA LUMPUR: Rain provided a temporary respite from the choking haze which has blanketed the country since early August.
Malaysian Meteorological Department director-general Jailan Simon said the rain helped but as long as the source of smoke remained, the haze would return.
“Of course it helps. However, it is only temporary. As long as the source of the smoke is still there, when the wind blows, the haze will come back.
“For example in Sarawak, after it rained two days ago, the API (air pollutant index) dropped to below 100, but today Kuching is back to ‘very unhealthy’ level at 225, while Samarahan is at 202,” he told the New Straits Times today.
API readings at several areas in Kedah and Penang, which recorded unhealthy air quality yesterday dropped but returned to the moderate level today after the rain.
In Sarawak, Samarahan and Kuching returned to very unhealthy level today, and five areas, namely Bintulu, Mukah, Sibu, Sarikei and Sri Aman recorded unhealthy API readings today as of noon.
Asked on the plan to conduct cloud seeding operation in Selangor, Jailan said the plan has been put on hold as the atmospheric conditions were not conducive.
“We are not doing it today because it is already raining. The conditions are not suitable for cloud seeding.
“We hope the rain will continue so that it can give some relieve to hard-hit areas such as Johan Setia in Klang,” he said.
Meanwhile, Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC) reported that hazy conditions in some parts of the region could continue.
It said the weather was generally dry in many parts of the southern Asean region, except for isolated showers in northern Sumatra, Peninsula Malaysia and Sabah.
Meanwhile, Bernama reported that flight arrivals and departures have returned to normal at Sultan Azlan Shah Airport (LTSAS) in Ipoh, Perak, with the first flight from Johor Baru arriving at 9am.
So far, only one flight has been rescheduled by Singaporean budget carrier FlyScoot from 9.40am to 10.45am.
On Friday, LTSAS had announced the cancellation of all departing flights owing to poor visibility caused by the haze, with arrivals diverted to the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah airport in Subang and the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).
keywords: haze, rain, smoke, dry, Malaysia, Indonesia, Asean, Malaysian Meteorological Department, Jailan Simon