Borneo fires burn 1.9 million hectares, haze chokes Southeast Asia

Wildfires have torched 1.9 million hectares across Indonesia since the start of the year, according to Nusantara Atlas. The resulting toxic haze has blanketed Southeast Asia, with air quality deteriorating across Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines. As of mid-October, Indonesia's Health Ministry recorded over 277,000 cases of respiratory illness, including more than 62,000 infants and toddlers under five. Authorities have deployed over 60,000 personnel to fight the fires, but peatland blazes remain difficult to extinguish.