The Tumbang Nusa bridge on Monday afternoon. Photo: Alexander Hotz/Coconuts Media
The journey to Palangkaraya, the capital of Central Kalimantan, Indonesia was by no means easy.
After two delayed flights from Jakarta, the Coconuts TV crew landed in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, and had to drive for five hours to reach Palangkaraya.
The sun was shining bright over Banjarmasin, but it gradually disappeared in the haze as we approached Palangkaraya.
The view along the road from Banjarmasin to Palangkaraya. Photo: Alexander Hotz/Coconuts Media
The haze thickened along the Tumbang Nusa bridge, which links the Pulang Pisau regency to Palangkaraya.
From there, it wasn’t difficult to spot land that was cleared by forest fires. We even witnessed a blazing fire engulfing huge patches of land by the road.
This area, which is owned by locals, was deliberately burned to clear land for palm oil plantations. Photo: Alexander Hotz/Coconuts Media
We reached the city in the evening. I really felt the acrid yellow smoke pierce through my nose in the brief moment we stepped out of the car and into our hotel’s lobby.
It was only in the air-conditioned bliss of my hotel room that I could breathe normally.
We expected the haze to clear out by the morning, but we were wrong.
The morning view from my hotel room in Palangkaraya. Photo: Hafidh Soeriawinata/Coconuts Media
The PSI level in Palangkaraya on Tuesday morning almost reached 1,000, with a visibility of just 100-200 meters.
These are horrid conditions for those of us who don’t live in haze-hit regions. I can’t imagine having to endure this everyday like the unfortunate people of Palangkaraya.
We’ll be filing dispatches in English and Bahasa Indonesia from Palangkaraya, Kalimantan – the epicenter of the Southeast Asia haze crisis for this special series: Borneo Burning.
