‘Everything is covered in ash’: Indonesia wildfires leave people in crisis

What the report says

Wildfires in Indonesia are leaving residents in West Kalimantan facing thick haze, ash and health problems, according to Al Jazeera’s report from Kubu Raya on 27 August 2026. The article says the fires have pushed schools to close and sent thousands of people for medical treatment, with pregnant women and children described as especially vulnerable. Local residents said the blazes have been unusually severe and have spread for nearly two weeks in the area covered by the report.

Al Jazeera reported that the fires are part of a broader emergency across Indonesia, with hotspots also burning in Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Java and Papua. President Prabowo Subianto said the government had deployed helicopters, aircraft, water pumps and thousands of personnel to help fight the flames. The Health Ministry said 3.4 million people are at risk of respiratory infections and that more than 260,000 face masks had been distributed in the hardest-hit areas.

Doctors and volunteer firefighters told the outlet that conditions are difficult because the fires are moving quickly through dry peatland, while water shortages and poor visibility are slowing response efforts. At one clinic, a doctor said many patients were coming in with coughing and sore throats each day. Parents said their children had repeated illness linked to the smoke and ash, and some families were keeping children indoors because the air was so polluted.

The report matters because it shows how Indonesia’s seasonal fire crisis is affecting daily life, public health and emergency response capacity, especially in vulnerable communities.