Wildfires in Indonesia have scorched more than 107,000 hectares across six provinces, prompting authorities to deploy cloud-seeding aircraft and suspend classes in affected areas as thick smoke blankets cities and drifts into neighbouring Malaysia.
Firefighting Efforts Concentrated on Six Provinces
Firefighting efforts are focused on Jambi, South Sumatra, West Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, and Riau, regions with extensive peatland that is highly susceptible to fires during the annual dry season. This year's conditions have been exacerbated by a more intense El Niño event, which some have described as a "Godzilla" El Niño.
Darwin Romy, an indigenous Dayak resident in Palangka Raya, the largest city in Central Kalimantan, told BBC Indonesian that fires have been burning near his community for over a month. "The smoke has become quite thick. When we step outside, our eyes start to sting. The smell of the smoke is also quite strong," he said. He added that flames had crept close to residential areas and that water supplies for firefighting were running low.
Schools Closed as Haze Blankets Cities
In West Kalimantan, the mayor of Pontianak ordered students to study online for as long as the fires persist. "We have started to feel it, especially at night and in the morning, as haze has already blanketed the city of Pontianak," Mayor Edi Rusdi Kamtono said on Monday, as reported by AFP. Schools in other affected provinces also suspended in-person classes for three consecutive days.
Beyond the six primary provinces, a separate fire burned for nearly a week inside Mount Bromo National Park in East Java, destroying about 550 hectares before it was extinguished on Monday. Authorities have since flagged new hotspots near the caldera of the active volcano, which has been closed to tourists since August 8. While the official cause of the fire is still under investigation, local officials believe human carelessness may be responsible. "A person lit a fire, then put it out, but the fire was not fully extinguished," said Gatot Soebroto, head of the local disaster mitigation agency.
Haze Crosses into Malaysia
The smoke has drifted across the border into Malaysia, with the town of Serian in the state of Sarawak recording an Air Pollutant Index reading of 195 on August 12, the highest in the state at that time. A reading between 101 and 200 is classified as "unhealthy", while anything above 201 is "very unhealthy" and readings above 301 are considered hazardous. At least nine areas across Sarawak logged unhealthy readings on the same day, according to Malaysian media reports.
The ongoing fires highlight the severe environmental and health impacts of the dry season, with authorities continuing to battle the blazes and monitor air quality as the haze spreads across the region.
