Indonesia: Riau haze spreads to W. Sumatra, agency says

The Jakarta Post 10 Feb 14;

The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) in Katapiang, Padang, West Sumatra, says the haze from land fires in Riau province had reached West Sumatra but rain had insured its affects were minimal.

“Wind from the northeast spread the haze to areas in West Sumatra, but it is still relatively safe,” BMKG Katapiang head of observation and information, Budi Samiaji, said on Monday as quoted by Antara news agency.

Sumatra currently has 62 hotspots, he said, most had been detected in Riau province (36), followed by Riau Islands (6), North Sumatra (17), Aceh (2) and Jambi (1).

Budi said in one day the BMKG’s monitoring team had found 112 hotspots, but “on average, around 60-80 hotspots are found per day.”

He further said that for West Sumatra, the haze had mostly affected areas bordering with Riau while other areas were still relatively safe.

"Heavy rain reduced the impact the haze had on the cross-border areas," Budi said.

Rainfall has been predicted to intensify in March and April before decreasing in May and June, he added. (idb/ebf)