Pekanbaru, Riau, (Antarariau.com)- The number of hotspots indicating the presence of forest and plantation fires in Riau Province have significantly dropped following rainfall recorded in several areas.
The Terra and Aqua satellites detected only two hotspots on Tuesday morning as compared to 12 hotspots on the previous day, Head of the Meteorological, Climatology and Geophysics Agency of Pekanbaru, Sugarin, stated here, Tuesday.
As Pekanbaru, Pelalawan, and Indragiri Hilir received rains on Monday afternoon, the haze, which had shrouded the cities over the past one week, vanished.
The air quality and visibility have returned to normal.
"The visibility in Pekanbaru city is now five kilometers," he revealed.
Haze, however, might return to Riau, as the neighboring provinces, such as Bangka Belitung has six hotspots, Lampung three, Jambi two, and South Sumatra one.
According to data provided by the Riau Haze Disaster Emergency Task Force, some one thousand hectares of forest and plantation areas were razed down by fires since June 2015. At least 1,022 Riau inhabitants were inflicted with diseases triggered by haze pollution.
Of the 1,022 affected inhabitants, 757 people suffer from respiratory problems, 160 suffer from skin irritation, 50 suffer from eye irritation, 26 from pneumonia, and 29 from asthma.
The authorities have made efforts to put out the wild fires by implementing weather modification technology and dropping water bombs using helicopters. (F012)
Number Of Hotspots In Riau Drops Drastically
