Hong Kong's air pollution soared to record levels yesterday, the Environmental Protection Department said, warning that a toxic stew enveloping the city was a danger to the public.

The government agency said it found Air Pollution Index readings that in one case were double the usual level and the public is advised to stay indoors or avoid prolonged exposure to heavy traffic areas. "Today's API is at record high levels," according to an agency official.

Hong Kong's famed skyline and harbour is often shrouded in a blanket of haze which has been criticised as a public health disaster and blamed for driving some expatriates away from the international financial hub.

In July 2008, the city's environmental agency recorded air pollution levels as high as 202, it said, well below yesterday's record numbers which ranged from a low of 179 to a record 413 reading at one roadside station.

"As the sandstorm from northern China is moving southward with the northeast monsoon and is now affecting Hong Kong, the Air Pollution Index is expected to reach the 'very high' or 'severe' level," it said in a statement.

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