Smoke from Indonesian fires pushes Singapore air into unhealthy range
Singapore's air hit the unhealthy range in all five regions by midday Tuesday as smoke from fires in Indonesia drifted in. Officials told people to cut back on long or hard outdoor exercise. The weather service says a strong El Niño may keep the dry season going into November.
Singapore woke up in smoke again. By midday Tuesday, the 24-hour Pollutant Standards Index, or PSI, was in the unhealthy range across the whole island, The Straits Times reported. The south reached 101, the last region to cross the line. Readings were 109 in the north, 113 in the west, 116 in the east and 131 in the center.
A PSI from 101 to 200 counts as unhealthy. Fine-particle readings, a guide for what to do right now, were elevated in four of five regions at midday, the paper said.
The smoke comes from fires in Indonesia. Moderate to dense haze from southern Sumatra and Kalimantan drifted toward Singapore on south-easterly winds, the National Environment Agency said. Fire hotspots in Kalimantan jumped from 175 to 533 on Oct. 4, AsiaOne reported, citing ASEAN weather data. The agency expects air to stay in the "high moderate to mid unhealthy" range.
Health advice: Healthy people should cut back on long or hard exercise outdoors. Older adults, pregnant women and children should keep it to a minimum. People with chronic heart or lung disease should avoid it, the agency advised, Yahoo News Singapore reported.
This is not a one-day problem. The PSI first crossed into unhealthy on Sept. 4, the first haze-driven breach since October 2023. It hit a 2026 high of 164 in central Singapore on Sept. 29.
El Niño is the reason it may last. Singapore's weather service told The Straits Times that strong El Niño events tend to delay the end of the dry season across southern Southeast Asia. It expects the rainy monsoon shift only in late October or early November.
The haze arrives during a big week. Political and business leaders are gathering for finance conferences, and the Singapore Grand Prix runs this weekend. No race-day forecast has been issued yet, Yahoo reported.
What we know: Haze has pushed air quality into the unhealthy range island-wide, driven by Indonesian fires.
What we don't: How long the smoke will last, and whether rains arrive before November.
Where outlets agree The Straits Times, AsiaOne and Yahoo News Singapore all report smoke drifting from Kalimantan and southern Sumatra, with officials forecasting high moderate to mid unhealthy air.
Where they differ Readings swung through the day: AsiaOne and Yahoo had the south still moderate Tuesday morning, while The Straits Times reported it crossed into unhealthy by midday.