A man uses a tree branch to try to extinguish a peatland fire in Palangkaraya, Central Kalimantan, on Oct. 22. | AFP-JIJI

JAKARTA – Pollution from smoke emitted by months of wildfires across Indonesia caused an estimated 3,560 deaths in the vast Southeast Asian archipelago in September, according to a new study.

The same month, about 57.8 million people in Indonesia were inhaling unhealthy to hazardous air, said the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), a Helsinki-based think tank.

“Worsening air quality due to forest and land fires in Indonesia pushed the estimated death toll to 3,560 cases in September 2026, a twofold increase from the August estimate,” said a CREA statement on Thursday.

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