JAKARTA — Indonesia has recorded 2,285 disasters so far in 2026, the country's National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) said on November 3, as the archipelago pivots from a brutal wildfire season into a flood-prone rainy season that is already claiming lives.
The latest additions to the tally — four floods, two forest and land fires, and one extreme-weather incident — capture a country caught between two disasters at once: fires still smouldering in the east while floodwaters rise in the west, according to BNPB's update presented at a November 3 press conference in Jakarta.
Illustration: Rescue workers evacuating families by boat through flooded streets in Indonesia.
What Happened
Berton Panjaitan, acting head of BNPB's Center for Data, Information, and Disaster Communication, presented the updated tally at the agency's studio on November 3. The four new floods struck Deli Serdang Regency in North Sumatra, Lumajang and Malang regencies in East Java, and Pidie Jaya Regency in Aceh. Forest and land fires — known in Indonesia as karhutla — were recorded in Parigi Moutong Regency in Central Sulawesi and Klaten Regency in Central Java, while Dairi Regency in North Sumatra accounted for the extreme-weather incident.
BNPB also reported two deaths in Lumajang from hydrometeorological disasters that included flash floods, inundation, landslides, and extreme weather. The agency counted 1,567 affected families and 13 damaged houses, while cautioning that data collection and reporting were still continuing.
The update lands as Indonesia's disaster apparatus shifts its weight from fire suppression to flood preparedness. On October 30, BNPB issued Circular No. 4/2026 to governors, district heads, and mayors nationwide, setting out preparedness guidelines for the 2026/2027 rainy season. BNPB head Lieutenant General Kristomei Sianturi announced the operational pivot during a review meeting on November 2 at Halim Perdanakusuma Air Force Base in Jakarta, attended by representatives of BNPB, the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), the military, police, ministries, and local administrations.
Under the revised resource plan, weather-modification equipment housed in provinces that have already entered the wet season — including South Sumatra, Jambi, Riau, and West Kalimantan — will be transferred to areas that remain dry and vulnerable to blazes, including Southeast Sulawesi, Central Sulawesi, North Maluku, and South Papua.
Separately, BMKG has issued an early warning for potential coastal flooding, known as rob, across several regions from November 2 to 17, linked to the new moon phase and higher tides. Coastal areas have been advised to prepare for possible disruptions, particularly to logistics and transport.
Illustration: An aerial view of forest fires burning in Kalimantan, with a water-bombing helicopter overhead.
Background
Indonesia's 2026 fire season has been described by the Asia Media Centre as among the country's worst in recent years, driven by a strong El Niño pattern. Independent monitoring platform Nusantara Atlas put the burned area at nearly 900,000 hectares by late August, and fires had produced 76 million metric tons of carbon by September 7, according to the same reporting. For comparison, earlier severe seasons burned 2.6 million hectares in 2015 and 1.65 million hectares in 2019.
The health toll has been heavy. Indonesia's Health Ministry recorded nearly 175,000 respiratory infection cases linked to the fires between July and September 2026, according to Asia Media Centre's account of BBC reporting. Haze from the fires reached Sabah and Sarawak in Malaysia, as well as Singapore, Brunei, and the Philippines, including Manila, ANTARA News reported. On August 26, the ASEAN Secretariat activated Regional Alert Level 3 while serving as the interim office of the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Transboundary Haze Pollution Control, requiring every member state to provide daily situation reports with haze-trajectory maps.
BNPB said it had deployed 51 aircraft and helicopters for forest and land fire operations across several regions — 30 assigned to water bombing and 21 to aerial patrols and weather-modification operations. The agency reported that the fire-affected area in Central Kalimantan had risen 56 percent to 547 hectares, while East Kalimantan's affected area increased 80 percent to 60 hectares. In Southern Papua, the area under fire management fell 25 percent to 455 hectares.
An earlier operational update detailed 18 weather-modification sorties through October 28. Central Kalimantan accounted for eight sorties, using 11,200 kilograms of sodium chloride and 500 kilograms of dry ice, with support from a Hercules aircraft registered A1328, according to Okezone News reporting cited in the update.
South Papua remains a priority region. Based on BNPB data as of November 1, the area had 379 hotspots, down from 943 on October 31, with 171 active fire spots and approximately 253 hectares still unextinguished, Berton Panjaitan said in a statement reported by detikNews. BNPB and BMKG have also run cloud-seeding operations there, with 13 sorties through October 31 using 13,000 kilograms of sodium chloride.
The recurring fires have also reached the courts. Indigenous and civil society groups in West Kalimantan have filed a class action accusing the Indonesian government of gross negligence and seeking stronger fire management, environmental rehabilitation, and assistance for affected communities, according to Asia Media Centre. President Prabowo Subianto and the West Kalimantan governor are among the case's ten defendants. None attended the opening hearing in Pontianak on October 7, 2026, after which the court adjourned proceedings until October 21.
The political stakes rose in mid-October, when President Prabowo named army general Kristomei Sianturi as the new BNPB head and a forestry ministry official to lead a newly formed peatland and mangrove body, tasked with restoring peatland and preventing repeated wildfires. Sianturi said at his inauguration that he would assess what foreign assistance could be accelerated to contain the wildfires, Reuters reported on October 15.
Why It Matters
Indonesia's disaster count is not an abstract statistic. Each entry in the 2,285 tally represents a community disrupted — a flooded road, a burned field, a family evacuated — and the November update shows how quickly one hazard hands over to another. Provinces emerging from months of smoke are now bracing for weeks of rain, while provinces still dry remain at fire risk. Managing both at once stretches aircraft, personnel, and local budgets.
The seasonal pivot also tests a system under strain. BNPB's 2026 budget was cut by 75 percent, according to figures reported by Mongabay and cited in recent coverage, even as more than 71,000 firefighting personnel were deployed. Jakarta has not declared a national disaster over the fires, a decision that affects how aid and coordination are mobilised. Meanwhile, the transboundary haze has strained relations with neighbours: Singapore has activated haze subsidies and summoned companies, while Malaysia plans to press the issue at the ASEAN foreign ministers' meeting in Manila on November 12.
For the wider region, Indonesia's fire-to-flood transition is a preview of a pattern climate scientists warn will become more common: longer, hotter dry seasons that prime landscapes to burn, followed by intense rainfall on degraded land that floods more easily. The country's experience in the coming weeks — whether early warnings, evacuations, and equipment transfers keep casualties low — will be watched across Southeast Asia.
Illustration: Indonesian disaster officials monitoring maps and weather screens in an emergency operations center.
What Happens Next
BMKG's coastal flood warning runs through November 17, and its forecasts for November 2 to 5 predict light rain across most of the country, with moderate rainfall possible in Aceh, North Sumatra, West Java, Central Java, Kalimantan, South Sulawesi, North Maluku, and parts of Papua. Local governments are required under BNPB's October 30 circular to ensure personnel and rescue equipment are ready for hydrometeorological disasters, including floods and landslides.
BNPB's ongoing assessment could lead to further adjustments in equipment deployment if localised drought conditions persist alongside widespread seasonal flooding, according to recent reporting on the agency's plans. In South Papua, officials say the falling hotspot count is a positive indication but still needs verification through monitoring and field inspections, and the burned-area figures may change after data updates and mapping.
The West Kalimantan class action, adjourned from October 7 to October 21, will also be one to watch, as will the ASEAN foreign ministers' meeting in Manila on November 12, where Malaysia is expected to raise the haze. And with COP31 opening in Antalya, Türkiye, on November 9, Indonesia's disaster season is likely to feature in broader arguments about climate finance, adaptation, and who pays when the world's fourth-most-populous country burns and floods in the same year.
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FAQ
How many disasters has Indonesia recorded in 2026?
BNPB's tally stood at 2,285 disasters as of November 2, 2026, after seven new incidents were added: four floods, two forest and land fires, and one extreme-weather event.
Where did the latest floods and fires occur?
The latest floods hit Deli Serdang in North Sumatra, Lumajang and Malang in East Java, and Pidie Jaya in Aceh. The fires were recorded in Parigi Moutong in Central Sulawesi and Klaten in Central Java, with the extreme-weather incident in Dairi, North Sumatra.
How many people were affected by the latest incidents?
BNPB reported two deaths in Lumajang, 1,567 affected families, and 13 damaged houses, while noting that data collection was still continuing.
Why is Indonesia shifting from firefighting to flood preparedness?
Many provinces have entered the rainy season, while others remain dry and fire-prone. BNPB's October 30 circular and its November 2 operational review redirect equipment and personnel to match each region's current hazard.
What is the regional impact of Indonesia's fires?
Haze reached Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, and the Philippines, prompting an ASEAN Regional Alert Level 3 on August 26. Singapore activated haze subsidies, and Malaysia plans to raise the issue at the ASEAN foreign ministers' meeting in Manila on November 12.
Sources
- Nusa Kini, "Indonesia Records 2,285 Disasters Through November 2, BNPB Says," November 3, 2026 (BNPB press conference, Berton Panjaitan).
- detikNews via Indonesianow, "South Papua Forest Fires Remain BNPB Priority, 695 Hectares Burned," November 2, 2026.
- Newsy Today, "Indonesia shifts disaster focus to flood preparedness," November 2, 2026 (BNPB Circular No. 4/2026, Halim review).
- The Binational briefing, "Tax Incentives Reviewed, Flood Warnings Issued," November 3, 2026 (BMKG coastal flood warning November 2–17; BNPB preparedness circular via Liputan 6).
- Reuters via The Edge, "Indonesia's New Disaster Mitigation Chief Plans to Assess Foreign Aid to Tackle Wildfires," October 15, 2026.
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