Jakarta – Schools reopened and residents went without masks in parts of Kalimantan and Sumatra yesterday as rain cleared smoke-filled skies that had hung over the region during weeks of raging forest and brush fires.

Officials in West Kalimantan said the haze had lifted, allowing students to return to schools that had been shut because of the smoke.

"Things are getting back to normal," said Mr Supriandi Prakirawan of the meteorology agency in Pontianak, West Kalimantan. "Visibility has improved because it has been raining since last night." He said the number of fires had been steadily dropping in Kalimantan since Wednesday and visibility had improved from 200 m to 5,000 m.

Rains also brought much-needed relief for residents of Pekanbaru, the capital of Riau province on Sumatra island.

But Mr Drajat Bintoro, a meteorology official, said visibility in that part of Indonesia was still only 700 m, although schools were open again and the airport reported no delays.

Environment Minister Nabiel Makarim said on Thursday that Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore had complained at the smoke haze blowing over their countries.

He described the problem as serious and said that while the current fires were smaller than in 1997, they were difficult to handle because some were in peatland and difficult to douse.

Officials have said the government lacks the manpower and money to prevent the fires. Jakarta has done nothing to fight the fires but has said it will cover cost overruns incurred by local governments in fighting the blazes.