Serian on the ‘brink’ of emergency as air pollution index reaches hazardous 438

Serian recorded an air pollution index of 438, putting the Sarawak district close to the threshold for a localized emergency declaration. Three other Sarawak locations also registered hazardous readings: Kuching at 376, Samarahan at 353 and Sri Aman at 335.

Readings between 301 and above fall into Malaysia’s hazardous category. Three more Sarawak areas recorded very unhealthy levels: Sarikei at 277, Sibu at 243 and Mukah at 216. Fifteen locations in Sarawak, Kedah, Labuan, Penang and Sabah recorded unhealthy readings ranging from 101 to 200.

Sarawak Deputy Premier Douglas Uggah Embas said areas reaching an index of 500 would be referred to the National Disaster Management Agency, known as Nadma, in Kuala Lumpur. Any emergency declaration would apply only to affected localities, not the whole state.

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If a location reaches an air pollution index of 500, the situation will be referred to Nadma in Kuala Lumpur at the federal level for further action under disaster management procedures.

“If a location reaches an air pollution index of 500, the situation will be referred to Nadma in Kuala Lumpur at the federal level for further action under disaster management procedures,” Uggah said. He added that, if an emergency were enforced, public and private offices and sectors in the affected area would close, while essential services could continue operating.

Environment Department Deputy Director-General Azuri Azizah Saedon said the ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre had detected 324 hotspots in Kalimantan, 42 in Sumatra and two in Perak and Sarawak. The regional haze map showed dry weather across much of southern ASEAN, except for parts of Peninsular Malaysia that received rain. Moderate transboundary smoke was also reported.

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If an emergency is enforced, all offices and public and private sectors in the affected area will be closed, and only essential services will be allowed to operate.