The hot spots indicate forest fires and people who had deliberately set fire to open up new cultivation land,"Padang, W Sumatra (ANTARA News) - Thick smog from 85 newly detected hot spots is reported to be covering West Sumatera province.
According to the head of the West Sumatra Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG)`s observation and information section, Syafrizal, recent satellite monitoring had detected 85 hotspots in Sumatra, spread across South Sumatera, Lampung, Bengkulu and Riau.
"The smog is causing low visibility, namely only 5-6 kilometers," Syafrizal said here Monday.
"The hot spots indicate forest fires and people who had deliberately set fire to open up new cultivation land," he said.
Moreover, with the current hot and dry weather, forests werte prone to fire and local citizen have been asked to be more alert to the danger of fires.
Syafrizal also said dry winds from Australia to Asia were blowing the smog from South Sumatra to West Sumatra.
Mild rain might overcome the thick smog and put out the hot spots that have caused it, he said.
In the Padang region, the smog lasted from morning until noon, and did not affect commercial flights at the international airport.
Flights were not been disrupted as Minangkabau International Airport (BIM) in Padangpariaman was equipped with landing systems instruments that assist airplanes in overcoming low visibility , Syafrizal said.
He also asked motorists in West Sumatra to be more careful because of the low visibility.
"Those who want to drive through the mountains and hills, had better turn on their fog lights because the fog is thicker in those areas," he said.
According to weather forecasts for West Sumatra for the next few days, there would be cloudy skies and the potential of light rains in the afternoon and evening.
Temperatures might reach around 20 degrees Celsius in the morning and 31 degrees Celsius during the day with 55-80 percent humidity.
(A050)
Editor: Aditia Maruli Radja
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