Malaysia orders school closures when haze API exceeds 200

Photo courtesy of New Straits Times

Schools, kindergartens and childcare centres in Malaysia must close immediately when local Air Pollutant Index readings exceed 200, as authorities activate escalating measures under the National Haze Action Plan.

Outdoor activities stop above API 100

Department of Environment deputy director-general Azuri Azizah Saedon said all outdoor activities must be halted once the API rises above 100. Education and childcare facilities must close when readings pass 200.

Institutions are required to monitor local readings continuously and prepare for possible closure when the trend moves towards the 200 threshold. The announcement came as several monitoring stations in Sarawak recorded hazardous air quality.

The measures form part of the National Haze Action Plan, which coordinates responses among government agencies as pollution worsens.

Disaster committees and cloud seeding

The National Disaster Management Agency will activate disaster management committees at district, state or national level if API readings remain above 150 for more than 24 hours.

Cloud-seeding operations may also be conducted after pollution stays above that level for 24 hours, although the work depends on suitable clouds and weather conditions.

Authorities said the different thresholds are intended to give agencies, schools and families time to respond before conditions become more dangerous. API readings between 201 and 300 are classified as very unhealthy, while readings above 300 are hazardous.

Regional smoke spreads across Borneo

Citing an August 31 report from the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre, the department said 261 hotspots had been detected in Kalimantan, 63 in Sumatra and two in Malaysia, with one each in Johor and Sarawak.

Moderate to thick transboundary smoke was observed across West, Central and North Kalimantan, Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei and parts of Palawan in the Philippines. The Asean Secretariat activated Alert Level 3 for the southern Asean region on August 27 following worsening conditions.

The haze has already disrupted daily life in Sarawak and prompted closer monitoring of public health, education and outdoor activity.

What it means for foreigners in Malaysia

Foreign families should follow announcements from schools and childcare providers and check official API readings before outdoor plans. When the index exceeds 100, strenuous outdoor activity should stop. Those with asthma, heart disease or respiratory conditions should take extra precautions and keep necessary medication available.

2 September 2026