THE haze could hit harder and sooner than expected - it is only a matter of when. All it will take for the acrid pall to blow towards Singapore, is a change in wind direction - unless bushfires burning there are quelled soon.

The National Environment Agency's (NEA) forecast said that south-westerly winds could blow smoke haze from Sumatran fires here within the next two weeks. Light, variable winds may or may not work in our favour, said Associate Professor Matthias Roth from the National University of Singapore's geography department. 'It's unpredictable.'

In any case, south-westerly winds are expected to strengthen during the June-September monsoon season, added Prof Roth - bringing the acrid pall back over Singapore. But one thing is for sure - slash and burning in Indonesia has started.

Hundreds of hotspots have appeared over the past few days, reported the Indonesian meteorological service. Over 850 hotspots were counted last week(May 12-18), up from just 130 the week before (May 5-11), said the NEA.

Singapore experienced its worst haze crisis in over a decade in 2006, when the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) hit an unhealthy 150. And signs could be pointing to a repeat of that year. Only time will tell. Said Mr Kwoh, 'Watch out for the next two months.'

Read the full story in Thursday's edition of The Straits Times