250,000 northerners seek help for smog-related conditions

Up to 250,000 northerners are seeking medical treatment for four different illnesses that have flared up amid the intense air pollution between February 17 and 23.

The Office of Disease Prevention and Control 1 in Chiang Mai has put the figure of affected residents at 248,618, including a high numbers of respiratory complaints among children under four and cardiovascular concerns among adults over 60.

It says the prevalence rate for respiratory ailments was 315.8 per 100,000 population, cardiovascular complaints 250.6, inflamed skin conditions 25.9 and eye irritation cases 22.18.

The situation was worst in nearby province Lampang, with 874.6 people per 100,000 population seeking treatment.

Forest fires and fires deliberately set to clear plantations and farming cropland continue to be major contributors to the haze.

The Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency’s fire-monitoring system, found online at fire.gistda.or.th, identifies 280 hotspots on Sunday across Thailand, most on farmland.

There were 95 in the North, 73 in the Central region, 52 in the Northeast, 48 in the West, 10 in the East and two in the South. In Phayao’s Dok Kham Tai district, 100 volunteers were battling forest fires at Wiang Lor, Kiew Kaew, Huai Dok Khem and Mae Ing (Mon Than Tawan) for the second straight day yesterday.

Area officials, vowing to strictly enforce a ban on entering forest reserves, warned people not to light campfires in woods because so many had already run out of control, destroying hundreds of rai of trees and killing wildlife.

SOURCE: The Nation