{
  "id": 17302864,
  "title": "Wildfire smoke kills an estimated 3,560 in one month in Southeast Asia's largest economy",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/30/wildfire-smoke-kills-an-estimated-3-560-in-one-month-in-southeast",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-30T23:01:02.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "VnExpress International",
    "slug": "vnexpress-international",
    "url": "https://e.vnexpress.net/news/news/environment/wildfire-smoke-kills-an-estimated-3-560-in-one-month-in-southeast-asia-s-largest-economy-5138883.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In September, an estimated 3,560 deaths in Indonesia were attributed to wildfire smoke, according to a study by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA). This figure represents a 42% increase from August, when deaths reached about 3,740. The majority of these deaths were linked to unhealthy to hazardous air quality, with 57.8 million people in the Southeast Asian nation breathing such polluted air. The study attributed 1,750 of the deaths to non-fire pollution sources, including power generation, industry, and transport. In four provinces of Kalimantan, air pollution deaths more than doubled from around 700 to 1,470. In five Sumatran provinces, deaths rose to 1,420, with smoke causing over 90% of these fatalities. On Java, Indonesia's most populous island, deaths decreased slightly to 1,530. The World Health Organization has linked fine particles (PM2.5) to increased risks of illness and premature death. While non-fire sources caused nearly 80% of deaths in West Java, Central Java, Jakarta, and Banten, they were the primary cause in Riau, Jambi, and West Sumatra. Population-weighted PM2.5 exposure averaged 36 micrograms per cubic meter nationwide in September, significantly higher than the WHO's annual guideline of 5 micrograms. Despite calls for a national emergency, Indonesia's Health Ministry recorded 333,470 cases of acute respiratory infection in seven fire-hit provinces, with nearly a quarter of them in children under 5. The government's reluctance to declare the fires a national emergency may be due to concerns about liability for haze crossing borders and the impact on exports. The International Monetary Fund projects Indonesia's GDP at $1.48 trillion this year, the largest in Southeast Asia.",
  "summary": "Smoke from forest and land fires across Indonesia caused an estimated 3,560 deaths in September, more than double the August figure, a Helsinki-based think tank said.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Reuters Business via SCMP",
        "title": "China helps dismantle major meth trafficking network in Southeast Asia",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/30/china-helps-dismantle-major-meth-trafficking-network-in-southeast-asia",
        "published": "2026-10-30T22:20:38.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}