Indonesia fire haze health toll
The gist
Indonesia's fire haze has caused 277,075 acute respiratory infections across seven provinces.
The annual peatland fires are now a regional health and political crisis.
How it unfolded
- Between July and August 2026Indonesia's Health Ministry recorded over 50,000 cases of respiratory infections linked to land and forest fires.
- Oct 8, 2026A class action lawsuit by civil society organisations in West Kalimantan against Indonesia's national government over its handling of wildfires began proceedings in Pontianak. Plaintiffs seek a declaration of a national disaster along with healthcare support and wider recovery measures, saying the haze has persisted more than 2 months.
- Oct 9, 2026Smoke from fires in Indonesia closed schools across much of Peninsular Malaysia, affecting roughly 2 million students. Singapore's National Environment Agency recorded a 24-hour PSI of 192 in the central region, its highest level in 2026. As of October 9, 7,555 hotspots were recorded across the country and 196 fire spots in six priority provinces, with 706.19 hectares burned in the previous 24 hours.