KUALA LUMPUR — Indonesia has begun to bring forest and land fires under control, and hopes the situation can be fully resolved within the next one or two weeks, President Prabowo Subianto said.
Prabowo said substantial resources have been mobilised to tackle the fires, including dozens of helicopters, more than a dozen aircraft, hundreds of water wells and pumps, as well as thousands of personnel.
“I think it has begun to be brought under control and mitigated in several places. I hope that within one or two weeks everything can be resolved,” he said in his speech at the launch of Indonesia’s 100-gigawatt solar power programme and groundbreaking ceremony Jembrana, Bali, today, Bernama reports.
Prabowo said the world was experiencing a strong El Nino this year, forecast to be among the strongest on record, requiring Indonesia to remain vigilant against risks arising from the weather phenomenon.
The president said he had personally visited several areas to inspect the situation and found that regional governments, ministries and agencies, the military, police and disaster management authorities were working effectively.
Last Saturday, Prabowo travelled to West and Central Kalimantan to inspect forest and land fire operations and lead response efforts, before heading to Sumatra on Monday to oversee firefighting operations there.
Haze has affected Malaysia with several areas in Sarawak and along the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia recording unhealthy readings this morning.
As of 2pm this afternoon, Selangor had six — the highest number among states — areas affected.
Department of Environment (DOE) Deputy Director-General (Development) Azuri Azizah Saedon said these areas were Johan Setia with the highest Air Pollutant Index (API) reading at 173, followed by Shah Alam (162), Kuala Selangor (153), Petaling Jaya (152), Klang (151), and Banting (146).
Other peninsula states affected by haze at unhealthy levels were Perak, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Putrajaya, Kuala Lumpur and Kedah
Azuri Azizah said moderate to dense transboundary haze was detected in West Kalimantan, Indonesia, moving northward towards the western part of Sarawak, while moderate to dense smoke plumes were also observed in other parts of Kalimantan as well as central and southern Sumatra.
In terms of hotspots, the ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC) recorded 287 hotspots in Kalimantan, 65 in Sumatra and 11 in Malaysia as of today.
The 11 hotspots in Malaysia were eight in Sarawak, two in Johor, and one in Selangor. – August 25, 2026