By Yasmin Ramlan
SHAH ALAM, Oct 2 — Schools in Selangor will operate as usual for the time being despite the ongoing haze situation affecting major parts of the state, as its severity has yet to reach levels which necessitates their closure.
However, state executive councillor for public health Jamaliah Jamaluddin guaranteed the state government will take necessary action if the situation worsens.
“As for now, the situation is under control and none of the areas (in Selangor) have recorded Air Pollution Index (API) readings of above 200 (very unhealthy).
“However, if it continues to increase or exceeds 200, we will work with the related departments to ensure the students’ health is taken care of and that school principals can make swift decisions,” she told the Selangor Journal, in response to the unhealthy air quality in the majority of the Klang Valley today.
Earlier, Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said her ministry will seek the advice and recommendations of the Health Ministry on the need to temporarily shut down schools or implement standard operating procedures, like mandating students to wear face masks.
She also urged schools to comply with the guidelines issued by her ministry, which, among other things, stipulates that education institutions cannot conduct outdoor activities if the API reading exceeds 100.
Meanwhile, Jamaliah said the National Haze Action Plan has already indicated that schools are to be closed if the API reading reaches 200.
“For now, although the condition is not very good, my office has been told that the API reading is dropping slowly and the Environment Department is monitoring in case proactive actions need to be taken,” she said.
The API Management System classifies air pollution into five distinct categories — 0 to 50 (good), 51 to 100 (moderate), 101 to 200 (unhealthy), 201 to 300 (very unhealthy), and 301 and above (hazardous).
As of 6pm, Petaling Jaya, Shah Alam, Klang, Banting and Johan Setia all registered unhealthy readings of 154, 154, 107, 155, and 144 respectively.
Meanwhile, Kuala Selangor was the only state outlier with a moderate API reading of 87.
The hourly API data indicated a slight improvement compared to earlier today.
