Singapore records unhealthy air quality in central area

Singapore’s central region entered the unhealthy air-quality category on Friday, with its 24-hour Pollutant Standards Index rising from 101 at 7 a.m. to 104 at 9 a.m., according to the National Environment Agency.

The other regions remained in the moderate range. At 9 a.m., the index stood at 89 in the west, 88 in the east, 78 in the north and 75 in the south. Singapore’s 24-hour PSI guides the agency’s daily health advice and is calculated from six pollutants: PM2.5, PM10, ozone, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide.

In its latest update on weather and haze conditions, the agency said many monitoring stations in Kalimantan, central and southern Sumatra, Sabah and Sarawak recorded unhealthy to hazardous levels. Scattered to widespread hotspots were detected in Kalimantan and southern and central Sumatra, with additional hotspots in other parts of southern Southeast Asia.

Dry conditions continued across many areas. Indonesia has spent several weeks trying to contain forest fires that have led to school closures and sent thousands of people for medical treatment, while smoke has also reached neighboring Malaysia and Singapore.