Forest Fire Haze Again Envelops Sumatra - Visibility 1 Mile In Pekanbaru

[hatrack]

JAKARTA : Acrid smoke from raging ground and forest fires on Indonesia's Sumatra blanketed the city of Pekanbaru, stinging eyes and reducing visibility, a meteorology official said.

"The smoke is visible and it stings the eyes. It is especially felt when riding a motorcycle," said Anwar from the meteorology office in Pekanbaru, the capital of Riau province, a major source of the haze in recent years.

The latest report on the fires released by the Indonesian Space and Aviation Agency showed that a total of 28 hotspots were detected in Sumatra, 25 of which were in Riau. Seven others were burning in Kalimantan, the Indonesian portion of Borneo island.

Anwar said that since dawn visibility had been at less than 1.5 kilometers (one mile).
"We've also only had weak winds in the past few days ... not strong enough to drive away the smoke," Anwar said.

EDIT

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/221500/1/.html

[midnight]

1. Sounds so awful.

Have you heard about any fires in Europe or Africa? Sorry I can't be very specific because I just briefly scanned a blog yesterday that was discussing this issue. I didn't think about it until speaking with someone who's family member is over in Germany. I did see that Germany is having sweltering heat. But did not see anything about fires.