PAI, THAILAND – Tourist arrivals in the backpacker hub of Pai in Mae Hong Son province plunged by almost 90% as hazardous smog blanketed northern Thailand for weeks and authorities warned of serious health risks from fine dust pollution.
Tourism in Pai collapses amid choking air
In Pai, arrivals reportedly almost collapsed as air pollution in the north persisted, according to local residents and authorities. Foreign visitors in particular stayed away or cut their stays short.
Jurairat Kantasuk, a former village head in Pai, said the number of foreign tourists had dropped by almost 90% over the past two months. She added that even guests with advance bookings often stayed only one day because they could not tolerate the conditions.
PM2.5 levels far above safety threshold
Data from Thailand’s Pollution Control Department on Friday showed PM2.5 readings in the north ranging from 63.1 to 193.2 µg/m³, classified as harmful to very harmful to health. In Pai district of Mae Hong Son, peaks of up to 182.7 µg/m³ were recorded.
This left Pai well above the stated safety standard of 37.5 µg/m³. The persistently high levels illustrated why daily life and travel plans across the region had been heavily disrupted.
Smoke and haze for nearly a month
According to Jurairat Kantasuk, residents of Pai had lived with smoke from forest and field fires for almost a month.
“Many people can only breathe in the mornings if they wear a mask.”
said Jurairat Kantasuk, former village head in Pai.
She said the smoke increased by the day, making a normal life hardly possible. Many people were now asking when the pollution would finally end.
Health risks hit vulnerable groups hardest
Health concerns had grown especially for children, older people and those with respiratory diseases, according to the former village head. Affected residents were experiencing more breathing difficulties and other complaints.
Authorities continued to classify the situation as a serious risk to public health. They urged the public to follow health warnings closely as long as the fires and smog remained out of control.
Authorities hand out masks and deploy health workers
Local bodies stepped up their response, including distributing protective face masks. Residents were also asked to avoid outdoor activities.
Health workers were sent into communities to provide advice and monitor high‑risk groups. Officials said these steps were meant to ease acute exposure but did not replace long‑term measures to tackle the underlying causes.
Over 1,000 hotspots as illegal burning continues
Satellite data on Friday detected 1,073 fire hotspots across 17 northern provinces, with Chiang Mai among the hardest hit areas. The sheer number of burn points showed how challenging the situation remained for emergency crews.
Officials acknowledged that illegal burning continued to undermine containment efforts, even during the Songkran period. As long as new fires kept flaring up, they said, it would be difficult to bring smog levels down.
Chiang Mai also suffocates under hazardous air
In Chiang Mai, air quality also remained dangerous, with some monitoring stations reporting PM2.5 readings above 100 µg/m³. This meant not only Pai but a large part of northern Thailand was affected.
On some days, global rankings listed Chiang Mai among the most polluted cities in the world. Observers said this underlined the international dimension of a problem that returned each year when fires and weather patterns combined.