Philippines: Health officials warn vs. haze in southern Mindanao

CNN Philippines 24 Oct 15;

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — Local health officials in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) advised the public on Friday (October 23) to stay indoors as much as possible to avoid suffering from respiratory diseases due to a haze now covering most of southern Mindanao.

"Don't underestimate the ill effects of haze. It's worsening the already compromised quality of air that we breathe imposing health risks to everybody," Dr. Kadil Sinolinding Jr., regional secretary for Department of Health (DOH-ARMM) said.

Sinolinding said the haze, which engulfed most parts of Mindanao and forced cancellation of airline travel to and from major cities to Manila, was made up of fine dusk, smoke, or light vapor — causing lack of transparency in the air.

The haze has been in Mindanao skies since October 17, brought by winds from vast forest fires in Indonesia.

"The haze aggravates the quality of the air that we breathe and some people may experience the following signs and symptoms, namely eye irritation, itchy and runny nose, sneezing, dry throat and coughs," Sinolinding said.

"We advised the people to take adequate amount of water, drink cough preparations if cough is manifested, over-the-counter antihistamines for allergic reaction or upon the advice of a physician."

Meanwhile, Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific flights to Cotabato from Manila remained cancelled, according to Charlene Jamero of the weather bureau PAGASA.

Air travel to and from the Cotabato airport had been suspended for a week since the haze.

"The haze is thicker now so we maintain our no-takeoff, no-landing policy," Jamero said.


Cotabato flights resume amid haze
John Unson The Philippine Star 25 Oct 15;

COTABATO CITY, Philippines – All Manila-Cotabato and Cotabato-Manila flights resumed yesterday, ending a six-day suspension due to poor mid-air visibility that may have been caused by the haze from forest fires in Indonesia.

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) also clarified that only small aircraft or those that rely on visibility are still prevented from landing or taking off in the early mornings in at least seven airports in the country.

Rodante Joya, CAAP deputy director general for operations, said those equipped with the modern Instrument Landing System (ILS) could fly even in heavy fog or haze.

“Rated pilots and fully equipped aircraft can land and take off anytime during any weather situation because our airports are equipped with the latest navigational instrument,” Joya said, referring to the Subic, Clark, Cebu-Mactan and Ninoy Aquino international airports.

He pointed out though that the airports in Dumaguete, Laguindingan, Zamboanga, Tagbilaran, Tambler and Cotabato are covered by a two- to three-hour flight suspension since Friday, usually starting at 5am.

In Bohol, hundreds of Manila-bound passengers rushed to the neighboring Cebu island as all Manila-Tagbilaran flights were rerouted to the Mactan-Cebu international airport.

Joel Palingcod, Tagbilaran airport tower controller, said no aircraft is given clearance to land or take off from here because of the airport’s lack of ILS.

He added that aircraft landing in the airport operates on visual flight rules, which may no longer be applicable as haze covered landmarks up to a radius of two kilometers. Aircraft flying on visual flight rules would need at least a five-kilometer radius to be able to watch for landmarks.

Palingcod, who communicated with his colleagues on Negros island, said it was worse for the Dumaguete airport, which declared visibility of only one kilometer.

Even given the limited visibility in some areas, CAAP has not issued a Notice to Airmen (Notam), which alerts aircraft pilots of hazards in the flight route or at a specific location.

The Maguindanao Airport, which services the Cotabato flights, was shut down on Oct. 17 after strong winds brought in the haze. Aviation authorities prevented even helicopters from flying over selected areas in Southern Mindanao to avoid accidents. The airport is located in Datu Odin Sinsuat town in Maguindanao, about eight kilometers southwest of Cotabato City.

Gov. Mujiv Hataman of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) claimed the haze and the danger it brings prevented prospective investors from visiting Basilan by helicopter. The investors reportedly wanted to inspect potential sites for a 4,000-hectare foreign-assisted Cavendish banana farm project.

Kadil Sinolinding Jr., ARMM regional health secretary, also issued an advisory over the weekend to warn the people on the health problems that the haze can cause.

“The haze carries dust particles that can contaminate the air we breathe. It can cause itchy eyes, dry throat and cough, sneezing and allergy. Let’s avoid going around breathing the air in areas where the haze from Indonesia had spread,” he said.

He advised residents to drink plenty of water and take anti-cough medicine under the guidance of physicians once afflicted with cough.

“We are advising people in the autonomous region to stay indoors and avoid exposing themselves to these health hazards,” Sinolinding said.

Charlene Jamero, weather specialist of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), told reporters the poor visibility in Maguindanao is largely due to the haze. – With Angeline Valencia, Rudy Santos


Haze disrupts Zamboanga weather monitoring
Roel Pareño philstar.com 24 Oct 15;

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines - The haze that lingered the southern skies in Mindanao since last week affected the weather monitoring, according to the local weather bureau.

Alan Gelani, local weather observer of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), said the heavy haze was already 5,000 kilometers below the sky.

“The weather monitoring was already affected like the visibility and the observation of the amount of clouds. So due to the obstruction of haze our reports here were limited because the haze is already overcast,” Gelani said.

Based on reports, the haze came from the forest fire in Indonesia.

According to Gelani, the Air Transportation Office (ATO) has started coordinating the visibility problem.

“They were really concern of the low visibility,” Gelani said.

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) has not reported any cancellation of flights here.

Meanwhile, City Health Officer Dr. Rodelyn Agbulos said residents in the highland villages complained of respiratory problem.

Agbulos said the haze could trigger respiratory illness.

In the Visayas, haze blots view of scenic spots
Leo Udtohan and Doris C. Bongcac Inquirer Visayas 25 Oct 15;

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol—Anita Dacaldacal, 46, woke up to haze-filled skies on Saturday.

From her house in Tagbilaran, she could hardly see Panglao Island nearby which used to be like a painting that greets her every morning.

“The air was very smoky. I can’t see Panglao Island,” said Dacaldacal.

Neighboring Cebu Island, which used to be visible from Tagbilaran, was also covered with thick smoke.

The haze did not spare the mountains of Maribojoc town.

Leonardo Samar, officer in charge of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration Bohol station, said the haze in the province came from forest fires in Indonesia.

He said Typhoon “Lando” (international name: Koppu), which recently battered central Luzon, helped bring the haze to the country.

Around 8 a.m. on Saturday, Samar said the thick haze had spread all over Bohol, which limited visibility to about 7 kilometers instead of the usual 14 km.

Samar said there was nothing to worry about because the haze is still tolerable.

It, however, triggered cancellation of flights on Saturday due to poor visibility.

As of 2 p.m., at least 450 passengers were stranded at the Tagbilaran Airport after Air Philippines/PAL Express, Cebu Pacific and AirAsia canceled their Manila-Tagbilaran and Tagbilaran-Manila flights because of the haze.

“We have canceled our flights today since it was difficult for pilots to land and take off with very poor visibility,” said Karen Batuhinay, Cebu Pacific operations manager.

In Cebu, the air was found to contain “high particulates” that can be risky for those who have heart and respiratory illnesses.

William Cunado, Department of Environment and Natural Resources director of Environment Management Bureau (EMB) in Central Visayas, said the haze covering Metro Cebu is a mixture of smoke from forest fires in Indonesia and local pollutants.

It is expected to linger in the next few days because there is barely any wind to blow it away and because there is no rain, he added.

Results of air quality tests which EMB conducted on Friday showed that haze particulates in Metro Cebu have become a lot denser than last month’s.

EMB employees did the tests in the cities of Talisay, Cebu and Mandaue.

Cunado said Friday’s testing showed that the presence of air particulate already exceeded the normal 150 micrograms per cubic meter standard. Particulate content in the air was only 50 to 60 micrograms per cubic meter last month.

Cunado said while haze does not have lethal contents, its high particulate content is unsafe especially for those with heart and respiratory ailments.

Small particles of less than 10 micrometers in diameter “pose the greatest problems because they can get deep into the lungs, and some may even get into the bloodstream.”


Philippines cancels flights, alerts hospitals over haze
The Philippines has cancelled flights and put hospitals on alert as its southern and central islands are covered by thickening haze from the Indonesian forest fires.
Channel NewsAsia 25 Oct 15;

MANILA: The Philippines cancelled flights and put hospitals on alert on Sunday (Oct 25), as its southern and central islands were covered by thickening haze from the Indonesian forest fires.

Smog from Indonesian slash-and-burn farming has choked vast expanses of Southeast Asia for weeks, killing at least 10 people, forcing events to be shut down and schools to close across the region.

International efforts to douse the blazes have done little to clear the air, and Filipino authorities warned ash levels were becoming increasingly dangerous in the southern islands.

"The department of health is advising those who have breathing problems or respiratory diseases to wear face masks in areas covered by haze," presidential spokesman Herminio Coloma told reporters. Hospitals in the south were ready to receive anyone affected by the haze, he added.

Six flights to central and southern islands were cancelled or delayed on Sunday due to the thickening smog, after thousands were left stranded over the past 10 days.

Pilots flying in the central city of Cebu could only see eight kilometres ahead, said government weather observer John Agbay, adding that visibility was also impaired in the western island of Palawan.

Indonesian forest fires are an annual occurrence, but dry weather has made them particularly bad this year and Malaysia, Singapore, Australia and Japan have all sent help to fight the blazes.

While the haze in the Philippines has been mild compared to other parts of Southeast Asia, the smoke has been largely unexpected as the islands affected lie thousands of kilometres away from the fires.

Singapore, one of the worst hit, on Sunday urged fellow ASEAN members to take "firm and decisive action" ahead of a group summit in Malaysia next month. The city-state issued the call after Singaporean troops and firefighters returned from an international assistance mission in Indonesia's Sumatra island.

Experts say Typhoon Koppu, which passed over the northern tip of the Philippines last week, may have contributed to the problem in the archipelago by dragging the smoke across from Indonesia.

- AFP/al