City in Thailand heavily polluted after forest fire

Smoke from forest fires has completely covered the popular tourist city, Chiang Mai in recent weeks.

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CHIANG MAI NOW MOST POLLUTED CITY IN WORLD

The air monitoring IQAir ranked Chiang Mai as the most polluted city in the world, now ahead of hotspots such as Delhi and Lahore.

According to IQAir levels of the most dangerous PM2.5 particle were more than 66 times as per the World Health Organization’s annual guideline.

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GOVERNOR URGING PEOPLE TO STAY INDOORS

The governor Nirat Pongsittitavorn put out a statement urging people to stay indoors and work from home to “protect themselves from PM2.5 particles.”

Thailand has been heavily polluted since the start of the year, which is caused by seasonal agricultural burning.

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Officials have warned Bangkok residents to stay indoors and work from home as Chiang Mai is covered with harmful haze.

As previously reported, almost 200 000 people in Thailand have been admitted to hospital because of air pollution in March. More than 1.3 million people fell sick since the start of the year as a result of air pollution.

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During another pollution peak in late January and early February, city authorities urged people to work from home.

A spokesman for Bangkok governor Chadchart Sittipunt — elected last year with promises to improve the city’s environment — said they would not hesitate to issue another similar order if the situation got worse.

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Aekvarunyoo Amrapala told AFP that nurseries run by the city had set up special “no dust rooms” with air purifiers to protect young children, as well as checkpoints to monitor vehicle emissions.