Malaysia has closed schools in its capital and several states as smoke from Indonesian forest fires pushes air pollution to unhealthy levels. Schools were ordered to close on Friday across Kuala Lumpur, the administrative capital Putrajaya and in the states of Johor, Malacca, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang and Selangor.
The move, which affected roughly two million students, came as Kuala Lumpur recorded an Air Pollutant Index (API) reading of about 170. The API is a government-run measure of air quality. Singapore, at the southern end of the Malay Peninsula, saw its air quality fall into the "very unhealthy" range, according to IQAir.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim described the haze as "indeed at a worrying level". He said he had spoken to Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto, who agreed to take "the necessary steps", though no details were offered. Anwar said he had asked Malaysia's minister of foreign affairs to push for an urgent meeting of ASEAN environment ministers, and that Kuala Lumpur is stepping up cloud seeding to trigger rain.
King Sultan Ibrahim said appropriate measures must be taken to protect schoolchildren, senior citizens and patients with respiratory illnesses, and declared that schools should close when API readings hit 150 or higher. Under Malaysian guidelines, API readings above 100 are classified as unhealthy, above 200 as very unhealthy, above 300 as hazardous, while readings beyond 500 constitute the threshold for declaring a local emergency. Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek promised parents more advance notice of closures in future.
In August, Indonesia's coordinating minister for political and security affairs said El Nino conditions were threatening more fires during the dry season. A month later, smoke started to blanket the region as the country experienced its worst fire season in over a decade. Fires have burned across six provinces, with at least 200,000 hectares scorched. Indonesia's Ministry of Health has recorded more than 170,000 respiratory infections, though the actual figure is likely higher as it only covers those who sought healthcare.
The haze has also worried organisers of Singapore's Formula One weekend, which is set to start on Friday and end on Sunday.