Artificial rain planned to help ease haze in Thailand

SONGKHLA, Oct 22 (TNA) -- The royal rainmaking operational unit stationed at the Wing 56 Network Centric Airbase, Klong Hoi Khong district of Thailand's southern Songkhla province said it is ready to initiate rainmaking operations immediately, once the weather clears up, as part of an effort to help decrease haze in the area. The Pollution Standard Index (PSI) level was measured at over 300 microgrammes per cubic metre earlier today, doubling that of the safety limit of 120 microgrammes per cubic metre. Director-general of Songkhla Nakarindha Hospital of Songkhla, Assist Prof Dr Thanarat Boonruang called a meeting with concerned officials to discuss the handling of respiratory patients due to current state of haze in the province. He said ordered all relevant clinics within the hospital to prepare for the increase of patients, as the level of PM10 has already passed 300 microgrammes per cubic metre, surpassing the safety standard of 120 microgrammer per cubic metre. The hospital director has also planned to send out teams of officials to inform the public of how to keep themselves healthy for the time being. Smog is still heavily blanketing Songkhla province fore 3 straight days in a row, with the level of PM10 measured within 24 hours standing at 356 microgrammes per cubic metre and is gravely affecting the health of local residents. The Songkhla provincial office has given out 5,000 face masks to the public, while preparing another 10,000 to meet public demands. The PM10 level measured in Naratiwat province, meanwhile, stood at 122 microgrammes per cubic metre, with the Naratiwat Disaster Prevention and Mitigation office already setting up a special centre to handle and prevent haze problems in Bang Nak subdistrict of the provincial seat. Visiblity in Trang province, on the other hand, has lowered to less than 200 metres, as the layer of haze has become thicker than in the previous days. (TNA)