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Gone quiet · last update Oct 19, 2026 / Indonesia

The 2026 Indonesian wildfires and the haze over Southeast Asia

Overview · reviewed October 28, 2026

In 2026 Indonesia had its worst wildfire season in a decade, with fires burning more than 1.9 million hectares of forest and peatland on Borneo, Sumatra and elsewhere by October.[1] Toxic haze spread across Southeast Asia, prompting an emergency in a Malaysian town and school closures, and reaching Singapore and the Philippines.[2][3][4] Indonesian authorities charged dozens of people with setting fires, and Singapore threatened legal action against companies it blamed for the blazes.[5][6]

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Toxic haze spread across Southeast Asia, prompting an emergency in a Malaysian town and school closures, and reaching Singapore and the Philippines.[2][3][4] Indonesian authorities charged dozens of people with setting fires, and Singapore threatened legal action against companies it blamed for the blazes.[5][6]

Coverage over time

Share of tracked outlets · weekly (UTC)

Week of 2026-07-13 (UTC): 1%, 3 of 559 tracked outlets (0 left, 1 center, 2 right)Week of 2026-07-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-03 (UTC): 2%, 10 of 537 tracked outlets (2 left, 4 center, 4 right)Week of 2026-08-10 (UTC): 1%, 7 of 545 tracked outlets (2 left, 3 center, 2 right)Week of 2026-08-17 (UTC): under 1%, 1 of 464 tracked outlets (0 left, 0 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-08-24 (UTC): 2%, 8 of 466 tracked outlets (4 left, 4 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-08-31 (UTC): 1%, 7 of 475 tracked outlets (3 left, 3 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-09-07 (UTC): 3%, 13 of 480 tracked outlets (1 left, 12 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-09-14 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-21 (UTC): 1%, 3 of 479 tracked outlets (1 left, 2 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-09-28 (UTC): 1%, 3 of 476 tracked outlets (1 left, 2 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-10-05 (UTC): 1%, 6 of 479 tracked outlets (3 left, 3 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-10-12 (UTC): 2%, 9 of 476 tracked outlets (4 left, 5 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-10-19 (UTC): 1%, 7 of 479 tracked outlets (1 left, 5 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-10-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outlets, so far

LeftCenterRightLighter bar: this week so far

Each bar is the share of the outlets on our Left / Center / Right rating scale that we tracked publishing that week which carried reporting on this story, split by the outlets' ratings. We track more outlets now than in the archive, so a share keeps earlier and later weeks comparable. An outlet counts once a week however much it published, and outlets in one ownership or syndication group count as one on each side they appear on. A rating describes the outlet, not the report. A gap means no such reports were collected that week, not that nothing was reported anywhere. Weeks run Monday to Sunday in UTC, so a report published on a Sunday evening in US Eastern time counts in the next week. 6 more outlets off the scale (not rated, or outside the left-right graphs) also reported; they are not in this chart. See them.

Weekly counts, outlets and reports (12 weeks with coverage)
Outlets on the rating scale that carried this story each week, of the outlets tracked that week, newest first
Week of (UTC)LeftCenterRightOf trackedShareReceipts
Oct 19, 20261517 of 4791%
Oct 12, 20264509 of 4762%
Oct 5, 20263306 of 4791%
Sep 28, 20261203 of 4761%
Sep 21, 20261203 of 4791%
Sep 7, 2026112013 of 4803%
Aug 31, 20263317 of 4751%
Aug 24, 20264408 of 4662%
Aug 17, 20260011 of 464under 1%
Aug 10, 20262327 of 5451%
Aug 3, 202624410 of 5372%
Jul 13, 20260123 of 5591%

Latest coverage

The newest reporting in this story's record.

  1. Oct 19, 2026 · first reported · Headline from Courthouse News Service

    Singapore expands crackdown on Indonesian companies linked to haze

Background

The fires spread through the summer, including in a popular national park around Mount Bromo, where Indonesia sent helicopters and hundreds of firefighters in August.[7] By late August authorities had charged 72 people with intentionally setting fires in Borneo and Sumatra, where nearly 286,000 hectares had burned,[5] and officials in South Sumatra turned to spiritual measures as haze blanketed the region.[8] In September Malaysia declared an emergency in a town in Sarawak after pollution passed its emergency threshold,[2] and Singapore's air quality reached unhealthy levels.[4]

The fires destroyed peatland and threatened orangutans, which had fewer and fewer places to flee; rescuers evacuated injured and starving animals and released some into protected forest.[9][10][11][12] In October Malaysia shut schools in one of its most populous states,[3] and Singapore issued notices to Indonesian companies over fires in Kalimantan and threatened to prosecute those responsible.[13][6]

Supporting stories (13)
  1. Indonesia fires have burned nearly 2 million hectares: Monitor
  2. Malaysia declares emergency in Sarawak as haze from Indonesia worsens
  3. Malaysia closes schools in capital, parts of country due to haze
  4. Praying for rain as fires, haze plague Indonesian Borneo
  5. Fire haze threatens health of millions in Indonesia, ministry warns
  6. Months-long Indonesia wildfires spew toxic haze across Southeast Asia
  7. Indonesia battles growing wildfires as Mount Bromo blaze spreads
  8. Indonesians brave choking smoke to pray for rain as country battles wildfires
  9. El Niño fuels wildfires in Indonesia, sickening some 100,000 people
  10. Indonesia fires threaten critically endangered orangutan: IUCN
  11. Dozens of orangutans saved from Indonesia blazes
  12. Indonesia relocates 8 orangutans into protected forest after rescue from wildfires
  13. Singapore expands crackdown on Indonesian companies linked to haze

The full record

Each date is when an update was first reported.

All 17 recorded updates

October 2026

  1. Singapore expands crackdown on Indonesian companies linked to hazeHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 5 outlets
  2. Indonesia fires have burned nearly 2 million hectares: MonitorHeadline from Phys · 3 outlets
  3. Dozens of orangutans saved from Indonesia blazesHeadline from WFMZ Allentown · 4 outlets
  4. Months-long Indonesia wildfires spew toxic haze across Southeast AsiaHeadline from France 24 · 6 outlets
  5. Indonesia relocates 8 orangutans into protected forest after rescue from wildfiresHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 6 outlets
  6. Wildfires threaten Indonesia’s orangutans as rescuers find injured animalsHeadline from WTOP Washington DC · 4 outlets
  7. Malaysia closes schools in capital, parts of country due to hazeHeadline from WFMZ Allentown · 5 outlets

September 2026

  1. Indonesia haze chokes neighbors, but little legal recourseHeadline from Phys · 3 outlets
  2. Indonesia fires threaten critically endangered orangutan: IUCNHeadline from Phys · 3 outlets
  3. El Niño fuels wildfires in Indonesia, sickening some 100,000 peopleHeadline from Scientific American · 11 outlets
  4. Indonesia rescues second orangutan mother and baby from wildfireHeadline from WFMZ Allentown · 3 outlets
  5. Malaysia declares emergency in Sarawak as haze from Indonesia worsensHeadline from Al Jazeera · 5 outlets
  6. Praying for rain as fires, haze plague Indonesian BorneoHeadline from WFMZ Allentown · 6 outlets

August 2026

  1. Indonesians brave choking smoke to pray for rain as country battles wildfiresHeadline from NPR · 5 outlets
  2. Fire haze threatens health of millions in Indonesia, ministry warnsHeadline from WFMZ Allentown · 8 outlets
  3. Indonesia battles growing wildfires as Mount Bromo blaze spreadsHeadline from Daily Journal · 12 outlets

July 2026

  1. Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia to face 'severe' haze in coming monthsHeadline from The Brunswick News · 2 outlets

Coverage & sources

Read the reports, see how much was collected over time, or compare outlets by political leaning.

Coverage & sources →