■HONG KONG
Pollution at record level
Air pollution has returned to a record high registered in 2000, triggering a warning for people with heart or respiratory illnesses, the Environmental Protection Department said yesterday. A pall of smog hung over the city, restricting views across Victoria Harbour as pollutants built up because of a lack of wind. Roadside air pollution readings reached a “very high” reading of 174 overnight in Central district, a record high last reached nine years ago. When the index exceeds 101, “persons with existing heart or respiratory illnesses are advised to reduce physical exertion and outdoor activities,” the department said. Air pollution levels were forecast to remain very high yesterday. Emissions from factories in southern China combined with emissions from local power plants and transport generate a thick haze over the city for large parts of last year.
■JAPAN
Wine study backs fish rule
It’s not just culinary etiquette to pair red wine with red meat and not fish: A research team says there is a scientific explanation. Researcher Takayuki Tamura and colleagues from the product development research laboratory of wine producer Mercian Corp found that wine connoisseurs established the rule of thumb because of the flavor clash between red wine and fish. Tamura and his team found that an unpleasant, fishy aftertaste noticeable after drinking red wine with fish resulted from naturally occurring iron in red wine, with some wines having more iron than others. Their study, published in the American Chemical Society’s Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, found that low-iron red wines might be a good match with seafood.
■HONG KONG
Giant crocodile trapped
It took five men and a tranquilizer dart to remove a monster 5m saltwater crocodile from a trap in the tropical north, park officials said on Friday. The giant reptile was snared near a popular swimming area on the outskirts of Darwin that was closed because of high levels of bacteria in the water, senior ranger Tom Nichols said. “This is the largest crocodile we’ve removed from the area in the last four years,” Nichols said. The reptile was in good condition and was taken by truck to the city’s crocodile farm. The Northern Territory has suffered two fatal crocodile attacks this year. The Northern Territory has suffered two fatal crocodile attacks this year and is estimated to have the country’s largest population of the animals — approximately 80,000.
■MALAYSIA
Mom, baby get free flights
A woman who gave premature birth to a boy on board an airplane minutes before it landed will get free flights for life along with her child, an airline official said on Friday. Liew Siaw Hsia, 31, gave birth on budget carrier AirAsia’s flight from Penang to Kuching on Wednesday. AirAsia spokesman Nazatul Mokhtar said the flight was diverted to nearby Kuala Lumpur for an emergency landing when Liew started labor pains. He said Liew was 27 weeks pregnant, 11 weeks short of the full term. A doctor on the flight helped the woman deliver while the plane was still 600m in the air in its final approach to land. Mother and son were rushed to a nearby hospital after the plane landed, an airline statement said. Nazatul said they were both in good shape and would get free flights on the airline for life.
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