Haze, Haze Go Away: Kuala Lumpur Is Now The FOURTH Most Polluted City In The World

The haze has gotten so bad that some schools in Selangor have been forced to close temporarily on Friday (13 September).

But what we didn’t expect is the air quality in our country to be so bad that it earned us a spot in a worldwide air quality and pollution city ranking list by Switzerland-based pollution mapping service AirVisual.

The New Straits Times reported that on Thursday (12 September) evening, Kuala Lumpur ranked seventh on the index, but a quick check by Rojak Daily on Friday morning showed that we have moved up three spots to fourth place.

Our Air Quality Index (AQI) is currently indexed at 152, which is categorised under 'unhealthy'.

Jalan Ampang Hilir and Mont Kiara’s air quality are off the charts, as both locations recorded 229 and 214 respectively, which has been labelled as 'very unhealthy'.

Leading the index is Kabul (177), followed by Jakarta (155), and Hanoi (153).

The API issued by the Department of Environment shows that readings between 0-50 is considered good, 51-100 (moderate), 101-200 (unhealthy), 201-300 (very unhealthy) while 300 and above as hazardous.

The Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah recently advised Malaysians to stay indoors, reduce outdoor activities, drink more water and stop open burning during the haze.

His Majesty also added that “those with chronic illnesses should reduce outdoor activities and use face masks to further reduce exposure to the haze”.