Indonesia fires and haze cause more than 5,200 deaths, study says

Research group CREA reports highest mortality risk in Central Kalimantan A street vendor walks amid thick haze from wildfires in Palangkaraya, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia, on Oct. 24. Levels of fine particulate matter in the air residents are breathing are more than 20 times the World Health Organization's threshold. © AP JAKARTA -- Prolonged exposure to toxic smoke from raging forest and peatland fires was responsible for at least 5,200 deaths in Indonesia in August and September, with people living in Borneo and Sumatra suffering the most, according to a study released on Thursday.