Update: PSI at Friday 21/06/2013 1PM is 401!!!

Wow! As of 3PM Singapore time 19/06/2013, the 3-hour PSI reading (based on PM10 particle size) is 172. This is the highest I’ve ever seen in Singapore. Only time I’ve seen worse was in Beijing with PSI equivalent at 300+ with visibility down to <10m. As you can see, the visibility now is still over 1km but RSAF didn’t fly today AFAIK.

This is a crop from Singapore Met services’ NOAA-18 satellite taken at 8am this morning. Malacca is worst hit from the looks of this image.

Based on the wind direction, the situation is not expected to improve much over the next few days unless a major downpour put out the fires in Sumatra, like in 1995, where brave Malaysian fire fighters battled futilely to put out the pith fires and are ultimately saved by a massive storm system.

Stay indoors with air-con on. If need be, buy some 3M air-con filters from DIY shops & install behind the normal air-con filters. The charcoal ones will even cut the burnt smell. Drink LOTS of fluid & see a doctor if you have allergic reaction!

Take care!