Serian air pollution hits hazardous level as haze blankets Sarawak

AIR quality in Serian reached hazardous levels on Sunday morning as worsening haze continued to blanket parts of Sarawak.

The Serian District Police Headquarters monitoring station recorded an Air Pollutant Index (API) reading of 364 at 8am, according to the Malaysian Air Pollutant Index Management System (APIMS) operated by the Department of Environment (DOE).

Three other areas recorded very unhealthy readings, with Samarahan registering 300, Kuching 291 and Sri Aman 214.

Eight other monitoring stations recorded unhealthy air quality, including Sarikei at 195, Sibu at 187, Bintulu at 179, Samalaju at 171, Mukah at 170, Kapit at 159, Miri at 155 and the Miri Industrial Training Institute (ILP Miri) at 151.

Under the API classification, readings of zero to 50 indicate good air quality, 51 to 100 moderate, 101 to 200 unhealthy, 201 to 300 very unhealthy, while readings above 300 are classified as hazardous.

API readings are updated hourly based on data from 68 air quality monitoring stations nationwide. -August 30, 2026