Singapore Braces for the Return of Hazy Skies
07/07/2023 19:20
Fires combined with unusually hot and dry weather are expected to worsen air quality in the coming months.
If weather patterns hold, Singapore may look similar to September 2019, when a haze shrouded the city.
Photographer: Dimas Ardian/BloombergSingapore is making contingency plans to distribute masks and create safe spaces for vulnerable groups as it prepares for unusually hot, dry weather to worsen air quality across the region.
The government is considering haze “sanctuaries” in public facilities, such as air-conditioned rooms in community centers, to protect the elderly and others, Grace Fu, Minister for Sustainability and the Environment, told parliament on Wednesday, giving an update on action plans by the country’s inter-agency Haze Task Force. She said the upcoming season may be the hottest and driest since September 2019, when a haze shrouded the city-state.