Thick haze shrouded the capital of Indonesia's South Kalimantan province on Borneo island, reducing visibility to only 10 meters (yards), the Antara news agency said.

The haze, apparently resulting from forest fires, also hung over busy waterways linking the city's three largest rivers Saturday, deterring many boats from plying the water. Smoke has also clouded parts of Sumatra island since the past week.

In 1997 thick smoke from extensive forest and ground fires covered parts of Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia for months, causing major traffic and health hazards.

Officials blame the use of fire to clear land, both by traditional farmers and large plantations, for the blazes. The Indonesian government has banned the practice but has been largely unable to enforce the prohibition.

The head of the Meteorology and Geophysics Body, Gunawan Ibrahim, warned Friday that the El Nino weather pattern, which is now developing, would worsen forest fires in Kalimantan and Sumatra.

El Nino refers to an extensive warming of the central and eastern Pacific Ocean that can change normal weather patterns.