Phuket haze advice

[geisha]

Hi all, I have friends thinking of spending Christmas and New Year on Phuket. As I used to live there I thought I'd join them for the holiday week. Now everyone is reconsidering as obviously no one wants to risk a holiday spoilt by smoke haze. One of them has asthma.I don't know what to advise them so if anyone could tell us the possible risk of the haze problems continuing it would be very helpful. Thanks.

[Kopitiam]

Usually, by December, all the slash and burn would have been long over. So, no need to worry.

[keeniau96]

It has been very bad for the past two weeks and today seems the worst. The hospitals here are issuing face masks to all as a precaution. Indonesians are making no noticable effects to reduce or curtail the burning so just have to wait for clearing. That may come about with the end of the rainy season, usually in mid-November, but no assurances.

[Pinot]

Rains expected there long before that time. It's on a day to day basis now although it's as bad as ever been today. We should send in the Marines to kill these Indonesian shit heads who start the fires. Over a thousand fires burning at the moment. Oh my Buddha.

[stevenl]

Should be long, long gone by then.

Every year there are the same issues with the burning in Indonesia, but normally we hardly notice this on Phuket. This year we do notice it since there is just a very, very slight breeze from the south. The prevailing wind direction this time of year is west, later in the year east. And as soon as we get a breeze from either direction the haze will be gone.

[xylophone]

Should be long, long gone by then.

Every year there are the same issues with the burning in Indonesia, but normally we hardly notice this on Phuket. This year we do notice it since there is just a very, very slight breeze from the south. The prevailing wind direction this time of year is west, later in the year east. And as soon as we get a breeze from either direction the haze will be gone.

Well we are now nearing the end of December and the smoke haze never really went away completely and now and over the past few weeks it has returned a little stronger and looking out from my balcony towards the Patong hills I can see it against the backdrop of the trees.

In addition I have a little bit of a nagging cough and a sinus headache from this crap – – is it still from the Indonesian fires or as someone has suggested is it finding its way down here from China?

It has certainly affected the quality of life for not only myself, but for a few other folk I know who are suffering with a slight cough, watery eyes and headaches.