JAKARTA (Aug 26): Air pollution from ongoing forest and land fires in Indonesia has reached hazardous levels with the air pollutant index (API) surging to 573 in parts of Central Kalimantan.
Health Ministry environmental health director Then Suyanti said Jekan Raya, a subdistrict in Palangka Raya, Central Kalimantan, recorded the reading based on air-quality monitoring at 17 stations as of 5am on Wednesday.
Muaro Jambi Regency in Jambi also recorded a hazardous API level at 302, said Then.
She said several other areas recorded very unhealthy air quality of between 201 and 300, namely: Pelalawan in Riau; Penukal Abab Lematang Ilir and Ogan Ilir in South Sumatra; Southeast Pontianak in West Kalimantan; and Gunung Mas and Katingan in Central Kalimantan.
“For the hazardous category, everyone should avoid outdoor activities,” she told an online media briefing on Wednesday.
For the areas with very unhealthy air, she advised the public not to remain outdoors for too long, as it can increase health risks, particularly in sensitive groups.
She said the ministry is stepping up efforts to protect public health. A circular is in the works and may be issued within the next two days by the ministry's secretary general. Among the measures include allowing schools to conduct distance learning when air quality deteriorates.
At the same briefing, the ministry's Head of Health Crisis Centre, Agus Jamaludin, said the fires had affected about 3.4 million people across seven provinces, namely Riau, Jambi, and South Sumatra on Sumatra island, as well as West, Central, East, and South Kalimantan.
“These provinces have declared an emergency alert status, not an emergency response status. We hope the firefighting efforts can gradually be completed so that the resulting haze can be reduced,” he said.
Agus said 42 people had suffered minor injuries. Two others, both burn victims in South Kalimantan, suffered serious injuries and have been hospitalised.
No deaths or evacuations have been reported. The authorities have mobilised 321 health personnel across the affected provinces, he said.
Meanwhile, the Forestry Ministry’s latest satellite monitoring showed that fire risks remained widespread, with 805 high-confidence and 11,313 medium-confidence hotspots detected nationwide as of 9.11pm on Tuesday.
The ministry said of the six priority provinces, South Sumatra recorded the highest number of high-confidence hotspots with 239, followed by Central Kalimantan (113), South Kalimantan (89), and West Kalimantan (86). Jambi recorded seven, and Riau one.
For medium-confidence hotspots, West Kalimantan recorded 2,447, followed by Central Kalimantan (2,168), South Sumatra (1,161), South Kalimantan (710), Riau (199), and Jambi (197).
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