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Haze still blanketing parts of Riau although hot spots disappear
Muslims attend a morning prayer marking Eid al-Adha as haze from wildfires blanket the city in Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Thursday, Sept
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Muslims attend a morning prayer marking Eid al-Adha as haze from wildfires blanket the city in Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2015. Slash-and-burn practices destroy huge areas of Indonesian forest every summer during the dry season, creating haze that blankets parts of the archipelago and neighboring Malaysia and Singapore. (AP) (AP)
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span class="caption">Muslims attend a morning prayer marking Eid al-Adha as haze from wildfires blanket the city in Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia, Thursday, Sept. 24, 2015. Slash-and-burn practices destroy huge areas of Indonesian forest every summer during the dry season, creating haze that blankets parts of the archipelago and neighboring Malaysia and Singapore. (AP)
A number of areas in Riau province were still covered by thick haze although hot spots had not been visible in the province's forests for the past 24 hours on Saturday morning.
The worst, according to the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) in Pekanbaru, occurred in Rengat, Indragiri Hulu regency, where the visibility was only around 50 meters on Saturday morning. In Bengkalis Island, the thick haze disrupted people's activities.
Head of BMKG's Pekanbaru office Sugarin, however, said that the conditions of the provincial capital of Pekanbaru and Dumai city were much better as the visibility reached 1,000 m and 2,000 m.
According to Sugarin, the haze in Riau came from forest fires in the neighboring provinces like South Sumatera, Lampung and Bangka Belitung.
BMKG recorded 71 hot spots on Sumatra Island as monitored by Terra and Aqua satellites in the morning. As many as 55 hot spots were detected in South Sumatra, 12 in Lampung, three in Bangka Belitung and one in North Sumatra.
The weather in Riau was cloudy. Light rain, accompanied by thunder and strong winds, may occur in the evening in northern, western, eastern and central Riau.
Riau Police have named 58 suspects in connection with forest burning from early 2015 until September 2015, while 16 corporations are under police investigation. (edn/bbn)(++++)
