BANGKOK, Feb. 25 (Xinhua) -- All schools under the supervision of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) have been ordered to close from Wednesday until Friday, as air quality in the capital worsened Tuesday.
The BMA has warned that the worsening air quality will persist as a result of poor air circulation and accumulation of PM2.5 dust in the atmosphere.
The BMA will ask high-rise and the electric train construction sites to suspend operations until Friday, said BMA spokesman Pongsakorn Kwanmuang on Tuesday.
Thai police have also escalated efforts in preventing six wheeled trucks from entering inner Bangkok during the daytime; police have also set up roadblocks to check vehicle emissions.
Bangkok district officials and municipal police will patrol open areas to ensure no burning outdoors, while city workers will spray water in the air and on roads to wash away dusts.
The Pollution Control Department said on Tuesday that the whole of Bangkok and its vicinity were found to contain excessive amounts of particulate matters PM2.5 dust from Tuesday morning, measured at between 55-90 microns.
The department also said that 62 air quality measurement stations in Bangkok and neighboring provinces have shown health threatening levels of PM2.5, exceeding the 50-micron safety threshold.
