Philippine week-long haze not from Indonesia fires – forecaster

MANILA, Philippines – A local Philippine weather forecasting website said Sunday, October 4, that the 7-day haze in Cebu island could not have come from smog carried from illegal Indonesian blazes as earlier reported.

“Fires from Sumatra/Indonesia [are] too far to affect us and disperse even before reaching Palawan or Sulu,” read a post from local weather forecasting website Weather Manila’s Facebook page.

“Besides, there are no reports of haze in other parts of SW (southwest) Philippines. And the prevailing wind pattern does NOT support this long-range transport explanation,” it added.

Developed and run by Dr Gerry Bagtasa, the 3-year-old Weather Manila “aims to deliver up-to-date, accurate and detailed weather information of cities in the Philippines as a supplement to the national weather bureau’s (PAGASA) weather forecast.”

Cebu suffered its 7th straight day of haze on Saturday, October 3, PAGASA said.

Haze from local pollution is common in Cebu, home to 4 million people, but usually disappears within a day. The current cloud of pollution blanketing the city in a blueish-grey veil is into its seventh day, though it has thinned considerably.

Malaysia, Singapore and large portions of Indonesia have for weeks choked on pungent smoke from forest fires on Sumatra Island.

The annual haze has become an environmental, health and diplomatic problem for the region. – with Agence France-Presse/Rappler.com