The skies over Indonesia’s Borneo island have turned orange and hazy as the country faces its worst wildfires in more than a decade. These fires have scorched vast areas of forest, particularly in West Kalimantan province, and have caused significant respiratory health issues for local residents.

In the village of Sungai Awan Kiri, farmer Juniarni has observed a troubling change—the once constant chorus of birdsong has fallen silent. The blazes and thick smoke have taken a heavy toll on wildlife as well as people. “They haven’t done anything wrong. Why are they the victims?” said Juniarni, who like many Indonesians uses a single name.

Fires are a recurring hazard during the dry season in Indonesia, but this year’s outbreak has been prolonged and intensified by the El Nino weather pattern, which has brought drought conditions to Borneo and Sumatra. The worsening situation has prompted increased efforts to contain the blazes, including the work of an all-female firefighting volunteer group known as The Power of Mama.

This group, comprised of more than 140 women ranging from farmers to stay-at-home mothers, patrols a series of 10 villages. Clad in red protective suits, they ride motorcycles to identify hotspots and extinguish small fires. Beyond firefighting, the volunteers educate neighbors about the dangers of using fire to clear land for palm oil plantations—a practice that contributes to the outbreak and spread of wildfires.

The Power of Mama was formed in 2022 by the Indonesia Nature Rehabilitation Initiative Foundation (Yayasan Inisiasi Alam Rehabilitasi Indonesia, Yiari), a non-governmental environmental organization. Yiari brought together women from four villages in the Ketapang region and provided training, as well as resources such as mobile phones and lunch allowances. However, the group does not engage with large-scale fires, which require specialized intervention.

Yiari supervisor Mita Anggraini highlighted the volunteers’ motivations, noting many aim to reduce smoke exposure to protect community health. Volunteer Elly Marlina, 46, said her children have previously suffered respiratory infections linked to wildfire smoke. “It took over a year for them to recover,” she recalled.

The challenges are particularly severe due to the region’s extensive peatlands, which remain combustible during drought and can smolder underground, making fires difficult to fully extinguish. “Our land was most susceptible to fires,” said Irma, a 38-year-old farmer and mother of two. She added that depleted water supplies have worsened conditions this year.

Indonesia’s forestry minister has warned that the fire season could extend into early November due to a delayed rainy season. Since June, dry weather has facilitated the rapid spread of wildfires across the archipelago, prompting the government to deploy over 50 aircraft for water bombing and cloud seeding.

Between January and July, wildfires have burned roughly 202,000 hectares nationwide—an area comparable in size to metropolitan Tokyo. West Kalimantan has been the hardest hit, with more than 38,000 hectares affected, according to official data.

Local residents express growing concern for the future of their environment. “Our hope is fading because as you can see, there are no more forests,” said Elly, as she surveyed charred peatlands struggling to recover from repeated seasonal fires.