Cases of wildfire-related respiratory illness in seven affected provinces more than doubled to 113,336 from Sep 1 to Sep 9, with residents of West Kalimantan among the people suffering the worst from hazardous fire emissions.
Transboundary haze has also caused unhealthy air conditions in neighbouring Malaysia and Singapore.
Malaysia’s Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the transboundary haze issue would be officially raised during his working visit to Jakarta from tomorrow until Sep 20, state media Bernama reported.
Malaysia prioritises long-term diplomatic cooperation and early preventive measures to address the transboundary haze issue, he said.
„Diplomatic measures must be pursued alongside technical efforts involving officials from neighbouring countries and Malaysian states,“ he added.
Indonesia has stepped up its firefighting efforts, deploying more than 50 aircraft to conduct water bombing and cloud seeding operations. Japan has also sent three CH-47 Chinooks to help battle the fires.
