Wildfire haze blankets Palembang and Pekanbaru
Visibility in Palembang fell below 50 meters, while Pekanbaru PM2.5 briefly reached 170 micrograms per cubic meter.
Haze from forest and land fires blanketed Palembang, Sumatera Selatan, and Pekanbaru, Riau, on Aug. 23, 2026. In Palembang, BMKG monitored the spread of smoke using Himawari-9 satellite imagery at 10:00 WIB; visibility in the morning was reported at less than 50 meters and air quality fell into the hazardous category from night through morning. In Pekanbaru, BMKG Stasiun Pekanbaru recorded visibility of about 2.5 kilometers in an update at 16:00 WIB, with air quality rated very unhealthy. PM2.5 concentration in the city even reached 170 micrograms per cubic meter at 17:00 and 18:00 WIB. BMKG also recorded 1.754 hot spots across Sumatera on Sunday afternoon, including 973 in Sumatera Selatan and 306 in Riau.