Hot spots cause thick smog in West Sumatra

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PADANG, West Sumatra: Thick smog from 85 newly detected hot spots is reported to be covering West Sumatra province.

According to the head of the West Sumatra Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG)’s observation and information section, Syafrizal, recent satellite monitoring had detected 85 hot spots in Sumatra, spread across South Sumatra, Lampung, Bengkulu and Riau, reports Antara news agency.

“The smog is causing low visibility, namely only 5-6 kilometres,” Syafrizal said here on Monday.

“The hot spots indicate forest fires and people who had deliberately set fire to open up new cultivation land,” he said.

Moreover, with the current hot and dry weather, forests are prone to fire, and local citizens have been asked to be more alert to the danger of fires. Syafrizal also said dry winds from Australia to Asia were blowing the smog from South Sumatra to West Sumatra. — Bernama