ActiveSG closes outdoor facilities in east, central Singapore as haze worsens

SINGAPORE – ActiveSG’s outdoor and non-air-conditioned sports and recreation facilities in the central, southern and western regions of Singapore were temporarily closed on Oct 15 as the haze situation worsened.

At 1pm, the 24-hour Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) in the west remained in the “very unhealthy” band at 210, after hitting a season high of 212 at noon. Readings in the rest of the island remained in the unhealthy range: central (194), east (170), south (162) and north (128).

In a Facebook post at around 11.30am, ActiveSG Circle, Sport Singapore’s online platform to promote participation in sports, announced the closure of all outdoor and non-air-conditioned facilities at its sport centres due to unhealthy PSI readings.

The affected areas include:

Central region

• ActiveSG Sport Park @ Teck Ghee

• Burghley Tennis & Squash Centre

• Bishan

South region

• Delta

• MOE Evans

• Queenstown

West region

• Bukit Batok

• Bukit Gombak

• Clementi

• Choa Chu Kang

• Hockey Village @ Boon Lay

• Jurong East

• Jurong Lake Gardens

• Jurong West

• Senja Cashew

• Sport Village @ Jurong Town

Sport centres in the north and east regions in Singapore remain open.

However, given the changing haze conditions, visitors were advised to still check for the latest updates at go.gov.sg/activesgfacilitiesclosure before heading down to the sport facilities.

SAFRA clubhouses have also scaled back operations.

In a Facebook post at around 1pm, SAFRA Toa Payoh said it has suspended all outdoor activities and closed its swimming pool on Oct 15 until further notice.

This follows similar suspensions announced on Oct 14 by SAFRA Jurong and SAFRA Choa Chu Kang.

Beyond sports facilities, organisations are also cutting back on outdoor events.

The Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants (ISCA), in a Facebook post at noon, announced that it has cancelled its annual ISCA Run, scheduled for the morning of Oct 17 at Gardens by the Bay.

The event was expected to draw nearly 3,000 people, including participants, families, volunteers, staff and partners.

ISCA said those who signed up will receive an e-mail regarding medal collection and other arrangements.

The haze situation in Singapore has deteriorated over recent days, with the 24-hour PSI in the west first crossing into the “very unhealthy” range at 9pm on Oct 14 with a reading of 203, and has remained there since.

Meanwhile, PM2.5 readings – used as a gauge for current air quality – hit the high band in the central areas at 152 at 1pm, while elevated figures were recorded across other regions: west (139), south (134), east (146) and north (98).

Ann Neo is with ST Now, the desk that covers breaking and trending news for The Straits Times.