FIRES DISRUPT FLIGHT IN WESTERN INDONESIA

Land clearing fires are disrupting flights in western Indonesia on 30 September 2009. More than 400 fires on Sumatra Island and on Kalimantan on the Indonesian side of Borneo have diminished visibility to below 1,200 ft/400 m, causing chaos at regional airports. The airport in Palangkaraya has closed and will reopen when visibility returns to 1 mi/1.6 km. Health warnings have been issued for the locations listed above and several schools have been closed. Similar conditions have been reported in Palembang, Pekanbaru and Lampung in Sumatra.