The Air Pollutant Index (API) as at 5pm today showed a marked improvement in air quality across the Klang Valley, compared to this morning where Kuala Lumpur, Gombak and Petaling Jaya recorded much higher levels from yesterday.

According to the index released by the Department of Environment as at 5pm, the reading for Kuala Lumpur went down from 365 at 11am to 276, Petaling Jaya from 363 to 240 while Gombak's API from 325 to 222.

However, Klang Valley residents should continue to take precautions such as wearing masks when outdoor as the air quality is still classified as 'very unhealthy'.

Meanwhile in Shah Alam, which recorded the highest level in the country at 412 this morning, is now down to 226.

It appears that the wind is blowing the smog further inland - to the east and up north.

The smog has reached as far east as Kuala Terengganu, where the index breached the 'unhealthy' 100 mark - it went up from 96 this morning to 104. Ipoh also hit 104, up from 89.

Air quality in Penang ranges from good to moderate but is likely to worsen later.

The figures for Port Klang and Kuala Selangor were down from 314 this morning to 182, and from 293 to 228 respectively.

The two towns were declared emergency areas yesterday after API readings there exceeded 500.

The emergency status is expected to be maintained pending a review by the authorities monitoring. Under the 'haze emergency', all schools and workplaces in the two areas are closed except for essential services, food shops and supermarkets under.

Forest fires

At the peak of the haze yesterday, Port Klang authorities were forced to suspend all operations at the Westport and Northport for more than two hours.

The haze is being blamed on peat fires outside Kuala Lumpur, as well as on the hundreds of jungle blazes in Indonesia's Riau and North Sumatra provinces.

Malaysia has since offered assistance to fight the forest fires in Sumatra, including carrying out cloud-seeding and drawing up a long-term programme to prevent a recurrence.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has pledged to take firm action against those responsible for forest fires in Sumatra. Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had on Wednesday telephoned Yudhoyono to discuss the crisis and offered help to tackle the problem.

Satellite images today , taken at 7.48am, show the hotspots count down to 53 in Sumatra. Two days ago, there were 542 hotspots.

Prayers for rain

Meanwhile, Muslims gathered in mosques throughout the country today to pray for rain to douse the haze that has smothered the west coast for nearly three weeks.

Religious leaders ordered mosques to lead prayers for rain after Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi issued a similar appeal to the mainly Muslim nation.

"Other races and religions could also pray for rain in their own way," he told reporters late today.

The Christian Federation of Malaysia has responded to Abdullah's call.

In a statement released yesterday, the federation urged all churches to "hold special prayers that God, in his mercy, will bring about a drastic change in the weather by causing heavy rains to fall and winds to clear the haze".

"In prayer, we also implore the government to make greater efforts to protect those most vulnerable to the bad air, like children, the elderly, and those who are sick," said federation's chairperson Bishop Dr Paul Tan Chee Ing.

"May the leaders of the various nations affected by the haze will be strengthened in their resolve to act immediately to find a permanent solution to cross-border haze caused by indiscriminate burning.

"Those responsible for such actions should be brought to book, as their actions have caused untold suffering to millions of people in neighbouring countries."