Malaysians have been advised to wear masks outdoors to protect themselves from thick haze blanketing several cities including the capital Kuala Lumpur, reports said today.

"They are advised to wear masks, especially if they are prone to respiratory illnesses such as bronchial asthma, allergies and chronic lung disease," Health Department chief Ismail Merican was quoted as saying in the New Straits Times .

"We are well-prepared to handle the possible influx of cases. Medical teams have also been told to be on the lookout for other possible conditions that may come about because of the haze," he said.

Environment Department director general Rosnani Ibarahim said late Sunday that Malaysians would have to put up with the hazy conditions for another two or three days.

Dry weather and slow winds were causing the haze to stagnate, she said.

Kuala Lumpur and five surrounding areas including the administrative centre Putrajaya were declared unhealthy Sunday, as were two areas in the neighbouring southern Negeri Sembilan state.

Visibility down

But meteorological services director Kalsom Abdul Ghani told AFP that Kuala Lumpur's air had improved Monday and was of "moderate" quality.

Visibility was down to one kilometre at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, the department's website said Monday. But airport officials said no flights had been delayed or cancelled due to the haze.

The central and southern parts of the Malacca Straits were also experiencing visibility of around one kilometre, the department said, adding that the situation was hazardous to ships without navigational equipment.

Normal visibility in Malaysia is over 10 kilometres.

Hundreds of fires in Indonesia's Riau and northern Sumatra provinces are blamed for causing the haze, along with more than 100 in Indonesia's Kalimantan and Malaysia's Sarawak state.

Peat fires which started a week ago in Cyberjaya, south of Kuala Lumpur, have also contributed to the smokey conditions in the capital, blocking out views of the city's skyscrapers and permeating office buildings with the smell of smoke.

In 1997 and 1998 choking haze caused mainly by Indonesian forest fires enveloped parts of Southeast Asia including Malaysia for months, causing an estimated 9.3 billion dollars in economic losses to the region.