PETALING JAYA: Haze hotspots in Indonesia’s Kalimantan and Sumatra have surged to their highest level in a decade, with 38,511 detected as of Oct 13, following a sharp increase over the past 47 days.
The last recorded high was in 2015, when the two regions registered a combined 58,106 hotspots.
According to data from the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC), the latest tally represents a 146% increase from the 15,652 hotspots recorded between Jan 1 and Aug 27.
Kalimantan accounted for 29,745 or about 77% of the combined total, while Sumatra recorded 8,766 hotspots.
Kalimantan’s tally more than doubled (144%), rising from 12,212 as of Aug 27 to 29,745 by Oct 13.
Sumatra’s count climbed by 155%, from 3,440 to 8,766 over the same period.
In just 47 days, the two regions recorded an additional 22,859 hotspots with Kalimantan accounting for 17,533 and Sumatra for 5,326.
Kalimantan’s 2026 tally has also surpassed the 19,681 hotspots recorded in 2019 and the 14,219 recorded in 2023.
ASMC first issued a Level 2 alert for the southern Asean region on Aug 3 as hotspot and smoke haze activity increased.
It raised the alert to Level 3 on Aug 26 as conditions worsened.
The haze also affected air quality in Malaysia, with Serian, Sarawak, recording an API reading of 519 on Sept 4, prompting the declaration of an emergency in the area.
According to ASMC, hotspot figures indicate locations where satellites have detected possible fires and do not necessarily correspond to actual fires on the ground.
Detection can also be affected by cloud cover, fires burning beneath forest canopies, incomplete satellite passes and the size of fires.
The data analysed are based on daytime, high-confidence observations from the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS).
Watch how haze conditions and hotspots have evolved from July 3 to Oct 11 across the region in the following video:
