The Meteorological Services Department said there will be a temporary relief this weekend for Peninsular Malaysia with an impending change in wind direction.

However, Department Assistant Director Leong Chow Peng said a 'complete clearance' of the haze could not be declared because wind directions had not settled, reported the Star.

With the current temporary change of the wind direction, the smoke will likely move south away from the peninsula, Leong noted.

Over the past few days, south-easterly winds from Sumatra curving to the northeast had brought smokes originating from there, she added.

The department expects rain bearing clouds from Sabah and Sarawak next week that should improve situation slightly.

It added that the region was entering the inter-monsoon period and heavy rain will be expected in mid-October.

S'pore badly hit

Across the Causeway, Singapore's air quality plunged into the unhealthy levels this morning as the island state was blanketed by thick smoke caused by raging bush and forests fires in Indonesia.

The air quality in Singapore had been worsened rapidly since yesterday evening when the three-hour Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) reading hit 80 at 4pm before worsening to 119 at 9am today.

This had prompted the National Environmental Agency (NEA) to issue a health advisory asking those who have respiratory problems to reduce their outdoor activities.