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Phuket gets better today with slight smog cover



BANGKOK: -- Visibility returns to Phuket international airport this morning with slight smog cover making flight landing and taking off returning normal.

The smog that blanketed the airport yesterday and stranded hundreds of passengers was slighted this morning with measurement at 6 am today at 25 microns, bringing down 24-hour average measurement to 89 microns.

Such level was not harmful to health, said Dr Pornsri Suthanarak, director of the Region 15 Environmental Office in Phuket.

Yesterday Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha ordered all departments to solve the haze problem as quickly as possible and also to make preparations for a recurrence of similar events in the following years.

Yesterday’s haze situation in Phuket was serious with measurements of airborne pollutants in excess of 200 micrograms per cubic meter and all commercial flights have been delayed.

Gen Prayut said he has ordered all relevant departments to initiate widespread diffusing of water spray into the atmosphere to reduce the amount of particulates in the air in all afflicted provinces.

Aid centers have been ordered to be set up so that immediate support can be given directly to residents in need of help.

Accordingly, he has also ordered that measures be developed to, if not prevent then mitigate, the effects of a repeat of such events in the future.

He said that following talks with the Indonesian authorities, an agreement has been reached to cooperate in solving the long standing problem.

Still, Gen Prayut stated that there were many hurdles to overcome not least of which is illegal encroachment into forests by slash-and-burn farmers.

The Thai government has nevertheless given assurances to their Indonesian counterpart that any necessary support will be forthcoming if and when it is asked for, he said.

Measurements taken yesterday indicated readings in excess of 200 micrograms per cubic metre, and visibility for aircraft was reduced to less than two kilometres.

This resulted in almost all airlines having to delay their flights by 50 minutes and up to 2 hours in worse cases due to poor visibility.

Meanwhile the airport in Surat Thani province has also suffered a similar fate even though it is able to receive and send off flights most of these flights have been delayed by 2 hours on average.

There have been reports however of local residents with eye and nasal irritation and many have been afflicted with throat infections.

Overall, the situation in the southern provinces is slowly returning to normal with air quality gradually improving today.

But this was overshadowed however by huge haze clouds that can be clearly seen far out to sea which is still troubling shipping in the Gulf of Thailand and Songkhla Lake.

Ships are now forced to take extra precaution when traversing these waters especially during night time.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/phuket-gets-better-today-with-slight-smog-cover


-- Thai PBS 2015-10-09

[Jimi007]

Yes! It is much better today! The past few days have been awful!

[LivinginKata]

Yep .... I can see the horizon now.