Southeast Asia haze drives oxygen tank, purifier demand

Toxic haze from wildfires in Indonesia has increased demand for oxygen tanks and air purifiers across parts of Southeast Asia, companies said, as polluted air forces school closures and fuels respiratory complaints.

AA Alive, a medical equipment company near Kuala Lumpur, said it was working at full capacity to deliver oxygen bottles and oxygen concentrators.

Rafina Firdaus, a member of AA Alive’s sales team, told AFP the company had seen a 35 percent increase in sales because of the haze. She said the company was delivering about 40 rental units a day and could meet the increase because it experiences haze every year.

The company supplies oxygen tanks, which can run for about three hours of continuous use, and oxygen concentrators, which can be used for about 24 hours.

Mubassar Khan, an AA Alive technician, said haze pollutants had cut the normal 1,000-hour lifespan of an oxygen concentrator filter by half.

Juliana Jalaludin, an environmental health professor at Universiti Putra Malaysia, warned that repeated exposure to haze and air pollution, especially during childhood, could increase the future burden of respiratory illnesses.

Retailers also reported higher air purifier sales. Courts said sales volume rose 600 percent from September 28 to October 12 compared with the same period last year. Singapore-based Gain City said sales had risen to nine times the level recorded at the start of the haze season in August.