Indonesia’s air pollution index has shown some areas of Borneo and Sumatra registering pollution levels of over 1,000, with readings of 300 or more already categorised as hazardous.
Respiratory illnesses linked to the fires have risen, with about 350,000 cases from August to Oct 25, the health ministry said. Central Kalimantan reported about 31,000 cases as of Oct 25.
“This is a disaster from nature and there is not much we can do,” Oktawina, 44, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, said with an oxygen tube hooked to her nose.
Medical staff on the white-and-blue bus recorded patients’ details and administered oxygen to residents reporting breathing difficulties. One of them, Yuda, said most residents who came to the bus coughing or had trouble breathing.
Purnasari, 31, another patient on the bus, said: “If I’ve been out of the house lately I feel tightness and coughing … because this morning the thick yellowish smoke so my breathing feels tight.”
Hundreds of students protested at the office of the provincial governor last week demanding a greater response to the fires, local news website Kompas reported.