Indonesia’s choking wildfire, haze worsen breathing woes on Borneo

<Pontianak>, Borneo is grappling with an intensifying haze crisis caused by raging forest fires. Locals are struggling to breathe amid hazardous air quality that has pushed health cases to alarming levels. Mimi Marlina, a 45-year-old housewife, expressed concern over worsening respiratory ailments, including coughing and fever, despite wearing a protective mask.

Volunteers across West Kalimantan have distributed oxygen cylinders to those in need, while health officials report a surge in respiratory illness visits. The province, along with Singapore and Malaysia, is experiencing transboundary smog, a mix of smoke from land clearing for agriculture and other pollutants. Indonesia's emissions have exceeded 19.7 million metric tons, making up over a third of global totals.

Fire-fighting efforts have intensified, with aircraft and cloud-seeding operations in place to combat the flames.