If you've been on the internet long enough, you might remember a little website called "thankyouindoforthecleanair.com".

The website was created in October 2015 in the thick of one of the worst haze episodes that Singapore has experienced.

And it may come in handy for 2023 if the haze continues to worsen.

2015 haze

How serious was the haze back then?

All primary and secondary schools were closed for a day on Sep. 25, 2015 when the haze was expected to surpass the "very unhealthy" Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) levels, level and hit the "hazardous" level.

Two national examinations scheduled for that day — the GCE O-Level Music and Higher Music Practicals — were postponed to Sep. 29, 2015.

Several FINA Swimming World Cup's events on Oct. 3, 2015 had to be cancelled as the PSI was in the "Unhealthy" range.

The Singapore government identified five Indonesian companies responsible for the haze — Asia Pulp & Paper, Rimba Hutani Mas, Sebangun Bumi Andalas Wood Industries, Bumi Sriwijaya Sentosa and Wachyuni Mandira — and even took legal action against them.

Singaporeans thank Indonesia, as per ex-vice president's comment

Evidently, the haze was serious enough.

So serious that the "thankyouindoforthecleanair.com" website was born for Singaporeans to "express their gratitude" to Indonesia for the 11 months of haze-free clean air a year.

The website was likely inspired by the comments made by the former vice president of Indonesia Jusuf Kalla.

He famously said:

"For 11 months, they (our neighbours) enjoyed nice air from Indonesia and they never thanked us. They have suffered because of the haze for one month and they get upset."

Site's revival coming in handy in 2023, with more than 610,000 clicks

The website went down in 2019, but made a return.

An Indonesian user named Dania Rifki supposedly relaunched and revived the site in that same year on a new domain, according to Reddit.

The site can be accessed at https://thankyouindoforthecleanair.web.app/.

Dania even added the Malaysia flag to the top of the site, inviting Malaysians to the party.

The site saw an uptick in the number of visitors, with the counter reading 20,215,037 on Oct. 4, and jumping to 20,829,644 on Oct. 7, an increase of more than 610,000 clicks within four days.

Haze in Indonesia and Malaysia

Malaysians are currently experiencing hazy conditions, particularly in the western regions, where 11 areas recorded unhealthy air pollution index (API) readings on Oct. 3, 2023, according to Reuters.

This is due to an increase in hotspots — areas that are experiencing fires — detected in Sumatra.

However, the Indonesian government has denied accusations that the fires in Sumatra are causing the haze in Malaysia, according to another Reuters report.

Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar said in an official statement, "We have been monitoring the situation, and no cross-border haze has reached Malaysia."

She noted that the haze has been at moderate to thick levels in some areas in Sumatra and Kalimantan, but maintained that no transboundary haze was observed.

Several schools in Sumatra and Kalimantan have closed for three days and shifted to online home learning due to the haze, according to Bloomberg.

Singapore records "unhealthy" air quality  for the first time in three years

On Oct. 7, 2023 morning, Singapore's air quality deteriorated, where 24-hour PSI levels in the central and eastern parts of Singapore were in the "unhealthy" range.

This is the first time in more than four years since Sep. 15, 2019 when the PSI in Singapore has reached over the 100 range.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) stated on Oct. 6, 2023 that the haze is likely to increase in Singapore over the Oct. 7 to 8 weekend.

It added that it will be issuing daily advisories from Oct. 7 evening onwards.

Lungs at stake, jobs at stake

Southeast Asia has been spared from a haze in the past three years since 2019 due to wetter-than-normal dry seasons.

The haze usually occurs during the southwest monsoon season between June and September and becomes more severe during periods of dry weather, such as El Niño.

Ahead of the 2023 El Niño weather, Indonesian President Joko Widodo threatened to dismiss the local police if they failed to stop large fires from happening, according to Bloomberg.

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Top image from thankyouindoforthecleanair website and @Doby218/X