The situation at Kuala Baram has improved this morning.
MIRI: The air quality in this division has generally improved this morning, although the Air Pollutant Index (API) recorded at the monitoring station in Miri was still at unhealthy level.
The reading at the Department of Environment’s air quality monitoring station at Miri as at 8am was 101, which was a marked improvement from 8pm last night when it hit 159.
An API reading of between zero to 50 is good, 51 to 100 is moderate, 101 to 200 is unhealthy, 201 to 300 is very unhealthy, while above 300 is hazardous.
The air quality in Miri returned to unhealthy levels yesterday following outbreaks of fire in the outskirt of the city.
Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) Miri chief Law Poh Kiong disclosed that the fire at Vista Perdana, Miri Go Kart track, Eastwood area and Tukau had triggered hazy condition in nearby housing estates as well as the city.
Firefighters had been deployed to combat and control fires at the areas that had been completely put out.
“API depends a lot on the the weather and smoke. The fires in Miri were all controlled and extinguished,” he said when contacted earlier this morning.
“The result of this morning patrol at Kuala Baram also reported that the situation in the early morning hours was clear with no haze,” he added.
The other two air quality monitoring stations here recorded moderate API readings.
The API reading recorded at Miri Industrial Training Institute (ILP) as at 8am was 84, a marked improvement from 1am today when it hit the unhealthy level of 108.
Meanwhile, the API reading at SK Kuala Baram 2 had also improved and stay at moderate levels with the highest reading of 81 recorded at 1am, and the latest reading of as at 8am today is 70.