Province of Indonesia on Borneo, prone to haze from forest fires
Wildfires across Indonesia have intensified amid a dry El Niño season. The largest blaze, in Mount Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park in East Java, has scorched hundreds of hectares of land, prompting park closure and air-ground firefighting operations. Authorities warn the fire season will remain severe through August and September.
Indonesia is battling widespread wildfires that have scorched tens of thousands of hectares, forcing school closures and online learning in affected provinces. Authorities are deploying cloud-seeding aircraft and firefighting efforts across six provinces with more than 107,000 hectares burned this year. The country faces a harsher dry season linked to El Niño.
Since early 2026 wildfires have scorched hundreds of thousands of hectares across Indonesia, concentrating on Borneo (Kalimantan). A powerful El Niño and prolonged dry conditions have driven deep-burning peat and forest blazes that have sent hazardous haze into Malaysian Borneo and Singapore, closed schools and prompted arrests and troop, helicopter and cloud‑seeding deployments.
Wildfires across Kalimantan and Sumatra have intensified under El Niño-driven drought, pushing smoke into Malaysia and Brunei. Authorities deploy cloud-seeding, water-bombing aircraft, and ground crews as hotspots rise and air quality deteriorates, threatening health and livelihoods.
Fires in Kalimantan, Indonesia, have burned tens of thousands of acres, triggering a regional haze that is drifting toward Malaysia and Singapore. Health impacts surge as thousands seek care weekly; authorities revoke permits for suspected burners while policing steps up arrests. The El Niño phenomenon is intensifying the dry season, raising the risk of further blazes.
Indonesian fires on Borneo and Sumatra have blanketed parts of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore in toxic haze. Authorities say thousands of personnel and aircraft have been deployed to fight the blazes, which are linked to El Niño, climate change, and peatland degradation. Schools have closed and air quality is worsening as smoke drifts across borders.