CHIANG MAI, Thailand – Toxic smog blanketed Chiang Mai on Monday as it was ranked the world’s second-most polluted city, just hours before Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s arrival to inspect the wildfire crisis.
According to world air quality rankings, Chiang Mai trailed only India, with Nepal in third. Local data from Chiang Mai University’s cmuccdc.org showed PM2.5 levels peaking at 321 micrograms per cubic meter in Mae Chaem, while Phrae province recorded a staggering 663 micrograms per cubic meter —over 13 times the safety limit.
At the Khuang Sing intersection, residents complained of eye and throat irritation while commuting through the thick haze.
Opposition People’s Party MP Phetcharat Maichompoo, who distributed masks to locals at Khuang Sing intersection, urged the government to decentralize power and budgets to frontline firefighters and fast-track the Clean Air Act before the May 13 deadline.
Prime Minister Anutin is scheduled to visit Mae Rim and Doi Saket this afternoon to monitor firefighting efforts and support frontline personnel. (TNA)
