JOHOR: Schools in Johor will remain shut for another five days from Monday (Oct 19) due to hazardous haze conditions.
According to State Education and Information Committee chairman Muhammad Naqib Md Ghazali, the decision was made following a meeting of the Johor Haze Management Coordination Committee at noon on Saturday.
“Monitoring reports indicate that Air Pollutant Index (API) readings remain at concerning levels, with no significant improvement,” Naqib added.
He said the extension would remain subject to developments in air quality, weather forecasts and ongoing health assessments.
Naqib said the measure was in line with the directive of the Regent of Johor, Tunku Mahkota Ismail, and that the decision also reflected the state government’s commitment to placing public health and safety at the forefront.
He added that Teaching and Learning at Home (PdPR) would continue throughout the closure in accordance with the Ministry of Education’s (MOE) PdPR Manual Version 2.0.
However, limited exceptions could be possible for students sitting for examinations and assessments.
“These exceptions are subject to coordination by the Johor Education Department (JPNJ) and strict compliance with health standard operating procedures (SOPs), with no additional activities permitted,” he said.
Johor’s education department will review its standard operating procedures daily in line with directives from Malaysia’s education ministry, Naqib said.
The department will also obtain the latest updates from the ministry’s examination board to coordinate examination and assessment schedules for government schools and religious schools in Johor.
Naqib stressed the importance of wearing face masks and following all established health guidelines, noting that health authorities had raised concerns over the public health risks of prolonged exposure to air pollution.
He also recommended more comprehensive preventive measures, particularly for children and vulnerable groups.
“Throughout October, 30,648 cases of asthma and upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) were recorded in the state, representing a weekly increase of 20.7 per cent,” he said, as quoted by local media.
The Johor government had earlier ordered all schools to close for two days from Oct 8, before extending the closure to educational institutions for another five days from Oct 12.
The latest extension follows these earlier school closures as authorities continue to monitor air quality and assess when it will be safe for students to return to classrooms.
Pasir Gudang in Johor recorded the country’s highest API reading of 190 as of 8am on Sunday, placing it in the “very unhealthy” category, according to Malaysia’s Department of Environment.
Johor was the worst-hit state, with eight of its monitoring stations in the unhealthy category.
According to the Department of Environment's Air Pollutant Index Management System portal, the other affected areas in Johor were Larkin (181), Kota Tinggi (181), Pengerang (178), Batu Pahat (169), Kluang (163), Tangkak (160), and Segamat (157).
In the Klang Valley, despite recent heavy rainfall, Johan Setia recorded 163, followed by Shah Alam (161), Klang (159), Petaling Jaya (157), and Banting (156). In Kuala Lumpur, Cheras recorded 156, and Batu Muda registered 155, while Putrajaya logged 159.
A reading between 101 and 200 is classified as unhealthy, while readings above 200 are considered very unhealthy under the API scale.