Chiang Mai has world’s worst air quality as fires rage in the north

Thailand’s northern city was ranked the #1 most air-polluted city on earth with a 209 air quality index score on airvisual.com. The air worsened to an AQI of 233 around noon.

Meanwhile the Pollution Control Department reports the average 24 hour level of PM2.5 dust particulates had reached dangerous levels in all nine northern provinces of the Kingdom.

The Thai safety limit for PM2.5 is 50 micrograms per cubic metre of air, while the safety limit for AQI is 100.

Forest fires, which have erupted in many parts of the North and even more over the Myanmar border, were largely to blame for the poor air quality and haze.

A satellite image report yesterday showed that the nine northern provinces had a combined 126 hot spots (burning fires), mostly in forestland. Nan had the highest number at 37 hot spots. The neighbouring countries of Myanmar and Laos had 345 hot spots and 1,345 hot spots respectively.

Chiang Mai International Airport runway… somewhere under the smoke haze