Clearer skies as winds change direction, smoke haze may hit Singapore from Oct 20

Residents in Singapore enjoyed a rare day of clearer skies and fresher air on Sunday (Oct 18), after a change in wind directions led to an improvement in air quality here.

In its daily haze situation update on Sunday evening, the National Environment Agency (NEA) stated that winds had turned to blow from the south.

"However, some smoke haze from Kalimantan continued drifting towards Singapore. Smoke haze was also observed over Sumatra," the agency said.

At 6pm, the one-hour PM2.5 was in the normal band in the northern region (36), while remaining in the low-elevated band in eastern (67), central (69), western (66) and southern (69) Singapore.

Meanwhile, the 24-hour Pollutant Standards Index was in the unhealthy range across Singapore.

The highest reading of 192 was recorded in the western region, while northern Singapore had the lowest reading of 109.

Turning to its forecast for Monday, NEA said showers are expected over Singapore and the surrounding region.

It added that winds are expected to blow from the south-southeast or south, which could limit the transport of smoke haze from Kalimantan to Singapore.

However, the agency pointed out that some smoke haze from Sumatra may still drift towards Singapore.

Data from the ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC) shows that the number of hotspots in Kalimantan rose to 110 on Oct 17, while the number of hotspots in Sumatra fell to 11.

The agency's 24-hour PSI forecast for Monday is between 100 and 190 — in the unhealthy range.

Smoke haze possibility from Oct 20

Despite the possibility of another day of better air quality on Monday, NEA also cautioned that Singapore could again experience smoke haze from Tuesday night.

This is due to a likely change in wind directions to east-southeasterly, which may then bring smoke haze from fires in Kalimantan towards Singapore overnight.

Members of the public are advised to check the latest PM2.5 readings before participating in outdoor activities.

周日（10月18日），新加坡空气质量因风向改变而改善，居民们享受到了难得的晴朗天空和清新空气。

国家环境局（NEA）在周日晚间发布的每日雾霾情况通报中表示，风向已转为南风。

“然而，来自加里曼丹的部分烟雾继续向新加坡飘去。苏门答腊上空也观测到了烟雾，”该机构表示。

下午 6 点，新加坡北部地区的一小时 PM2.5 浓度处于正常范围（36），而东部（67）、中部（69）、西部（66）和南部（69）地区的一小时 PM2.5 浓度仍处于低偏高范围。

与此同时，新加坡各地的24小时污染物标准指数均处于不健康范围。

西部地区记录到的最高读数为 192，而新加坡北部地区的最低读数为 109。

展望周一的天气预报，新加坡国家环境局表示，新加坡及周边地区预计将有阵雨。

报告还指出，预计风向将来自东南偏南或正南方向，这可能会限制加里曼丹岛的烟霾向新加坡的输送。

然而，该机构指出，来自苏门答腊的一些烟雾可能仍会飘向新加坡。

东盟专业气象中心（ASMC）的数据显示，10 月 17 日加里曼丹岛的热点数量上升至 110 个，而苏门答腊岛的热点数量下降至 11 个。

该机构对周一的 24 小时 PSI 预测在 100 到 190 之间——处于不健康范围内。

10月20日起可能出现烟雾

尽管周一空气质量可能再次好转，但新加坡国家环境局也警告说，从周二晚上开始，新加坡可能再次出现烟雾。

这是由于风向可能变为东南偏东风，从而可能在夜间将加里曼丹岛火灾产生的烟雾吹向新加坡。

建议公众在参加户外活动前查看最新的PM2.5读数。