On Borneo’s scorched peatland, a teen volunteer in a Superman cape becomes an unlikely symbol of hope

Palangkaraya, Borneo, Aug 23 — A young Indonesian volunteer firefighter, dressed in a Superman costume, has become an unlikely symbol of hope as he combats the blazes ravaging the island's scorched peatlands. Rudiyansah, 17, joins his father’s volunteer firefighting group, established in 2020, to extinguish fires that have consumed vast swathes of the island, casting a thick smog over parts of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei.

The South-east Asian nation has been battling infernos that have left the landscape charred, forcing firefighters to contend with a lack of water due to drought. This year's fire season has been the worst in the volunteer group's history, with fires burning over 200,000 hectares of land between January and July. That is an area three times the size of Jakarta, according to the government.

Rudiyansah dons the brightly coloured cape only for fun, but his striking image, combined with videos of him using a hose to douse foliage, have gone viral, earning him the title of "forest hero." Volunteering since 2023, Rudiyansah remains a "normal kid" at home, though he often asks to join his father on firefighting missions. Despite the challenges, Rudiyansah calls on firefighters across Indonesia to persevere in their efforts to contain the blazes.