Number of hotspots in Sumatra drops further: NEA

Channel NewsAsia 13 Feb 14;

SINGAPORE: The number of hotspots detected in Sumatra on Thursday dropped to 107 from 283 on Wednesday. There were 458 hotspots on Tuesday.

In an update, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said the drop in the number was due to increased cloud cover.

NEA said localised smoke plumes and haze were still visible in Riau province where most of the hotspots were detected.

For the rest of this week, NEA said the likelihood of transboundary haze affecting Singapore remains low, as the prevailing northeasterly winds will keep the haze away from Singapore.

But Singapore may experience occasional slight haze due to accumulation of particulate matter under stable atmospheric conditions.

As at 8pm, the 3-hr PSI is 38 and the 24-hr PSI is in the range of 33 to 40.

A reading of 50 and below means the air quality is in the "good" range.

NEA added that some localised afternoon showers can also be expected in the next few days.

It said it would continue to monitor the situation and provide updates as necessary.

Updates are available at the NEA website, the haze microsite, or at NEA’s Facebook page and NEA’s Twitter.