The forest fires in Indonesia has seen neighbouring countries like Malaysia and Singapore bearing the burden of the haze which is getting worse and worse by the day.
This has caused places like Kuching to be announced as the most polluted city in the world because of the haze, while dozens of schools in Malaysia have temporarily closed down.
The air, especially in Indonesia, has become so polluted that birds are falling dead on the streets as the API readings have reached over 500!
Source: Twitter
The haze has even taken lives like a four-month-old baby from Indonesia who died from shortness of breath and respiratory infection while a 59-year old man was found dead sitting against a tree in thick smog in his plantation.
Just as citizens of Indonesia aren’t able to see very clearly when they’re out on the road, the severity of the haze has become so bad that it’s even visible from outer space!
In response to the recent burning in Kalimantan, NASA released a satellite image of the country taken on 14 September. The images were uploaded to NASA’s Earth Observatory website.
As you can see from the picture, the area around Kalimantan is covered with white smoke while land can hardly be seen from the satellite image.
Source: NASA Earth Observatory
Source: NASA Earth Observatory
Source: NASA Earth Observatory
NASA’s recorded data also pointed out that the Kalimantan forest fires began as early as August and have only begun subsiding in September, according to Sin Chew Daily.
Citizens of Malaysia are urged to stay indoors as much as possible and to stay hydrated amidst this horrible air pollution. Hopefully, the haze will subside very soon as it’s getting extremely hazardous.
Also read: Baby Dies After Haze Causes Her to Have Shortness of Breath & Respiratory Infection
