State of Emergency Declared in Sumatra’s Riau Province due to Smoke from Forest Fires

Malaysia closes schools as blanket of smoke covers Kuala Lumpur, adjacent states

Malaysian schools have been ordered closed as a hazardous smog from Indonesian forest fires blankets the capital, multiple states and neighboring Singapore.

At least 34 of Malaysia’s 52 air quality stations were recoding  unhealthy air levels on Tuesday, according to local reports.

Meanwhile, Indonesian authorities declared a State of Emergency in Sumatra’s Riau province as hazardous levels of pollution were reported in multiple regions, including Sumatra and Borneo.

“Tens of thousands of people in smoke-choked regions of Sumatra and Borneo have fallen ill, while air travel there has also been disrupted due to poor visibility,” said a report.

Dark Gray Air Warning!!

Analyzed Fires and Smoke from Satellite

Either the satellites are grossly malfunctioning, or major forest fires in Canada continue to go largely unreported.

Analyzed Fires and Smoke from Satellite on this ArcIMS server were updated on  Mon Jul 29 03:10:35 2013 GMT. Source: NESDIS

Llaima Volcano Erupts Again!

Chile’s Llaima Volcano, one of the largest and most active volcanoes in South America renews activity!

The Llaima volcano dribbles lava. Cherquenco town July 2, 2008. REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado. Image may be subject to copyright. See FEWW Fair Use Notice!

Llaima volcano, a stratovolcano, is spewing lava, Chilean Govt said, issuing an evacuation order which imposed a 15 km exclusion zone. The lava, flowing towards the Calbuco River, has reached about 1 km from the crater.

Llaima volcano eruption viewed from Temuco (Araucanía Region, Chile) January 1, 2008
Source: Flickr (http://www.flickr.com/photos/8556851@N04/2170301355/); License: Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0; via Wikimedia Commons,

Llaima volcano erupted on New Year’s Day and spewed ash and smoke on february. The volcano’s last major eruption occurred in 1994. On January 1, 2008, another eruption forced hundreds of residents from nearby villages and tourists in the national parkto evacuate the are. A column of smoke reaching 3000 m high spewed above the volcano. The volcanic ash expelled by Llaima reached Argentina.

It is feared that that the lava could cause an abrupt melting of snow and producing waves of lahars that could bury the nearby villages.

The snow-capped Llaima’s renewed activity starts just two months after the eruption of the Chaiten volcano about 525 km further south.

The top of Llaima rises about 3, 120 meters above the sea level and consists of two summits. Pichillaima, the lower summit is about 2,920 meters high. The ski center Las Araucarias lies on Llaima’s western slopes.

Llaima is located about 85 km northeast of Temuco and 665 km southeast of Santiago, within the borders of Conguillío National Park, and overloks the Sierra Nevada and the Conguillío Lake. Llaima’s slopes are drained by the rivers Captrén, Quepe and Trufultruful.

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