Singapore Haze Craze Lights a Fire on Social Media [INFOGRAPHIC]

Every single time we’ve used the ‘pollution’ tag on this blog it’s been in relation to China. But this time, Singapore is the one choking on its chewable air due to illegal burning of forests on Indonesia’s Sumatra island. While this is primarily an ecological disaster, it’s also making life tough for Singaporeans who are shrouded in a pungent smog that’s a health risk to children and the elderly. The Singapore haze is also lighting a fire on social media where the nation’s netizens are seeking information, griping, and posting very gloomy photos.

Social media mavens WeAreSocial.sg have observed that over 290,000 Singaporeans have mentioned the haze over 340,000 times on social media this week – that’s in a country of just five million. The team also made a neat infographic (pictured below).

The main hashtag is #SGhaze, which has 148,344 mentions so far on Twitter. Over on Instagram, that tag has been applied to 11,829 (presumably very grey) photos.

Of course, let’s not forget that Malaysians and some Indonesians are languishing under the same pall. Also, Singaporeans can be thankful that this is temporary – unlike Beijing’s chemical cocktail atmosphere. Singapore’s PSI has just hit 400 as I write this just before 12 noon on June 21, while Beijingers are skipping like Julie Andrews in the Swiss Alps with a PM2.5 index of 138, which is “unhealthy for sensitive groups” but way better than the Chinese capital much of the year.

Here’s the infographic:

(Thanks again to WeAreSocial for the graphic. Left image: AP Photo/Joseph Nair; Right image: Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

For more fun graphics like this one, check out previous entries in our infographic series.