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Think tank estimates 3,560 Indonesia deaths from fire smoke in September
The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air said wildfire smoke caused an estimated 3,560 short-term air-pollution deaths in Indonesia in September, with tens of millions exposed to unhealthy air.
A Helsinki-based think tank estimated that smoke from forest and land fires caused 3,560 deaths in Indonesia in September 2026, as drought-driven wildfires left tens of millions breathing unhealthy air1,2.
The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air said Thursday that worsening air quality from those fires pushed the estimated fire-related death toll to 3,560, a twofold increase from its August fire-smoke estimate1. Al Jazeera reported the same 3,560 fire-smoke figure and said CREA put total air-pollution deaths that month at 5,310, up 42 percent from 3,740 in August2.
The Japan Times, citing CREA, said about 57.8 million people in Indonesia inhaled unhealthy to hazardous air in September1. Al Jazeera described a record peak of about 58 million people at those levels and said people inhaling hazardous-level air in Kalimantan, on Borneo, nearly tripled from 2.8 million to 6.4 million on the worst days2.
Al Jazeera said CREA attributed another 1,750 deaths to chronic non-fire emissions from urban and industrial sources2. Fire smoke accounted for 94 to 99 percent of air-pollution-related deaths in Kalimantan and more than 80 percent on Sumatra, while deaths on Java remained largely tied to urban and industrial sources, according to that account of the report2.
The Japan Times quoted CREA as saying, "Worsening air quality due to forest and land fires in Indonesia pushed the estimated death toll to 3,560 cases in September 2026"1.
Al Jazeera said an El Nino pattern and severe drought have fueled fires, deforestation, and smog across the archipelago and raised pollution in Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, and East Timor2. It said the government in Jakarta, facing criticism, said Wednesday it had deployed more than 72,000 people for cloud-seeding and firefighting, activated more than 2,100 doctors and health workers in hard-hit areas, and distributed 5.3 million masks2.
The figures are modeled estimates from a think-tank study, not a government count of confirmed deaths, and neither outlet published the full methods in the copy reviewed here1,2.
Not medical advice.
Sources
How it’s being reported
2 sourcesFirst reported by 
The Japan Times
The Japan TimesFirstFire pollution killed 3,560 people in Indonesia in September, report says
The Helsinki think tank's September death estimate and the doubling versus August.
Reports CREA's estimate of 3,560 fire-smoke deaths in September and 57.8 million people exposed to unhealthy-to-hazardous air.
Leaves out Regional split of fire vs urban pollution, government firefighting response, and transboundary haze.
Smoke from wildfires killed 3,500 people in Indonesia in September: Report
Fire smoke versus chronic urban pollution, Kalimantan and Sumatra exposure, and government operations.
Adds CREA's total air-pollution death tally, regional fire vs urban split, El Nino drought context, and Jakarta's defense of its fire response.
Leaves out The Japan Times' 57.8 million exposure figure is given as a 58 million record peak.
Where they agree
- CREA, a Helsinki think tank, estimated 3,560 deaths in Indonesia in September 2026 from wildfire smoke.
- Tens of millions of people were exposed to unhealthy or hazardous air that month.
Where they differ
How the September death increase is described
Size of the population exposed to unhealthy-to-hazardous air