According to The Jakarta Post, six hot spots were detected in the Indonesian Riau province on Jan 12.

Just six days later, the number tripled to 18. Forest and land fires were reported to reappear at North and West Sumatra as well as Riau.

Climatologists warned about the coming drier and hotter weather which can lead to more forest fires in Kalimantan. In response to that, the central government has deployed helicopters to Riau and Kalimantan, especially the less accessible hilly areas, to extinguish the fires. They will closely monitor private companies and slash-and-burn practices in the forests by ramping up more patrols and public education.

All that said, you don't need to chiong to restock your supply of N95 masks just yet.

Firstly, having 18 hot spots is pretty much nothing compared to past years' records. There were 197 hot spots in total last January, for instance, but we weren't affected.

Also, forecasts seem to indicate that the dominant wind direction from now till April is likely to come from the North-east, blowing any potential haze from Indonesia away from us. Although of course, the wind's direction can change. And haze does not only come from Indonesia.

While our neighbour is fighting fires to prevent the haze from returning, let's continue to show our gratitude for our fresh air and do our part to ensure it won't return.

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Top photo via Charles EYES PiX Flickr

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