Indonesian military helicopter on wildfire mission crashes off Borneo, killing 1

An Indonesian military helicopter, on a firefighting mission, crashed off the coast of Borneo island on Wednesday, resulting in the death of one crew member, according to the army. The Southeast Asian archipelago has been grappling with extensive wildfires for months, affecting Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua islands, and generating toxic haze that drifted towards neighboring Malaysia, East Timor, and Singapore.

The helicopter departed from Seruyan district in Borneo’s Central Kalimantan province on Wednesday morning to combat fires in the Tanjung Puting National Park, a sanctuary for critically endangered Bornean orangutans. The crash occurred while the aircraft was collecting seawater for water-bombing efforts. The cause remains under investigation.

One crew member lost their life, with five others rescued. The army has not disclosed information on the condition of the two remaining crew members. Indonesia has resorted significantly to aerial operations, in addition to ground-based firefighters, to tackle the fires, which have scorched over 1.9 million hectares (4.7 million acres) over the past nine months.

The government has not verified or refuted this figure. Climate factors, such as a robust El Nino weather phenomenon, drought, deforestation, peatland draining, and illegal land clearing for timber, palm oil, or mining operations, are believed to be contributing to the fires. The haze produced by the blazes has reportedly caused 3,560 deaths in September alone, with approximately 57.8 million people exposed to unhealthy or hazardous air during that month, as per the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.

Over 400,000 individuals in Indonesia have received treatment for acute respiratory issues stemming from the toxic haze, according to the health ministry's latest report. The government defended its response to the fires on Wednesday, stating that over 72,000 personnel participated in cloud-seeding and firefighting operations, 2,100 medical professionals and healthcare workers were activated in affected regions, and 5.3 million masks were distributed.