As witnessed during the morning by the air quality tracking app PAM Air, the majority of monitoring stations in Hanoi reported red and purple signals, which corresponds to “unhealthy” and “very unhealthy” warnings on the The Air Quality Index (AQI) scale.

Many locations recorded “very unhealthy” air quality, including in the districts of Thanh Xuan, Cau Giay, Dong Anh, and Gia Lam.

Meanwhile, the capital’s neighbouring provinces, including Nam Dinh, Ha Nam, Hung Yen, Thai Binh, and Hai City are also in the midst of facing severe air pollution, posing health risks for people.

According to experts, rice field burning after the harvest season is among the main causes of air pollution, along with vehicle emissions and construction activities.

The situation is forecasted to worsen over the coming days until next week.

People are therefore advised to measure air quality regularly and keep their doors and windows shut. It can be viewed as necessary for people to wear a mask when going out, have more trees around their house, and wash their eyes and throat with saline before going to bed.

The World Health Organisation warned that PM2.5 dust could enter the body via the bloodstream, thereby affecting major organs.

Source: VOV