KUALA LUMPUR, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- The upcoming monsoon transition period is expected to bring heavy rain and winds to alleviate the ongoing haze in Malaysia, the country's meteorological department said Saturday.
The monsoon transition phase is expected to begin on Sept. 24 and will last until the beginning of November, marking the end of the southwest Monsoon period which began in May, the department said in a statement.
With the heavy rain and strong winds, the haze situation nationwide is expected to improve, the department said.
However, the department warned that heavy rain along Peninsular Malaysia's west coast, and along parts of the northern Borneo states of Sabah and Sarawak could result in flooding and damage to weak infrastructure in these areas.
As of 5 p.m. local time, 18 areas recorded "unhealthy" Air Pollution Index (API) readings of between 100 to 160 API, an improvement from Friday.
According to the country's air quality rating, an API reading of zero to 50 is "good," 51 to 100 "moderate," 101 to 200 "unhealthy," 201 to 300 "very unhealthy," and 301 and above is "hazardous."
Malaysia's ministry of energy, technology, science, climate change and environment said the haze was triggered by the forest fires in neighboring Indonesia.
The Indonesian meteorology and geophysics agency said previously that a satellite image detected thick haze from a forest fire in Indonesia spreading into Malacca Strait to Singapore and Malaysia.
