HAZE. Haze caused by forest fires in Indonesia reaches parts of Negros Oriental. Residents have been advised to stay indoors as much as possible and wear N-95 masks as the Environmental Management Bureau in Central Visayas placed some areas in the province, as well as other parts of the Visayas and Mindanao, under haze alert. (Photo courtesy of Msgr. Julius Heruela)
MANILA -- The Department of Health (DOH) has prepositioned medical supplies to protect residents in the Visayas and Mindanao from possible health problems brought about by the haze from the forest fires in Indonesia.
“We’re already preparing supplies including the N-95 masks, which might be needed. They're still monitoring the air quality if it is beyond acceptable levels and already in the hazardous levels,” DOH Undersecretary Eric Domingo told reporters Thursday on the sidelines of a press conference in Manila.
On September 15, the Environmental Management Bureau warned that intense forest fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan in Indonesia could cause "high levels of air pollution" in the southern part of the Philippines.
“Yes, the haze is brought here through habagat (southwest monsoon), and the small children and the elderly are always the vulnerable sectors easily affected, especially those with lung diseases,” Domingo said.
“Meron nang nakapasok na haze sa bansa pero sa pagsusuri ay hindi pa naman sa dangerous levels (Haze has entered the country but according to observation, it hasn’t reached dangerous levels). Our regional offices, especially in Visayas, are checking the air quality,” he added. (PNA)
