New York City air quality reaches dangerous levels due to Canadian wildfire smoke
The National Weather Service issued an Air Quality Alert for New York City and parts of the Tri-State. Janice Yu and Sam Champion have the latest.
NEW YORK (WABC) -- The smoky haze that blanketed New York City and parts of the Tri-State Tuesday is expected to stick around Wednesday.
Intense Canadian wildfires are to blame for the air quality in the northeastern U.S. Officials warn New York City residents to limit outdoor activities on Wednesday.
Authorities say at least 160 fires are burning in Quebec alone, which is about 400 miles north of New York City.
The National Weather Service has issued an Air Quality Alert for New York City and parts of the Tri-State area.
At this point, New York City schools remain open, but students will not be doing any outdoor activities during their school day.
On Tuesday, a Red Flag Warning was issued for parts of New Jersey.
Lightning from isolated thunderstorms in Pennsylvania and New Jersey could be a source of new wildfire ignition. Any fires that develop may quickly get out of control and become difficult to contain, like a wildfire that broke out in Ocean County, New Jersey.
The smoke is making for potentially dangerous conditions, especially for people with respiratory issues.
RELATED | Interactive map to track air quality across the New York City region
The air quality alert means air pollution concentration in the region will be unhealthy for people with heart or lung disease, children and adults over 65.
The New York City Department of Education recommended that "prolonged outdoor activity be limited and that special attention be made to vulnerable students and staff populations."
Dr. Jack Caravanos is an environmental health expert at NYU who studies environmental toxins and pollution. He says because of the Canadian wildfires, the air quality is three times worse than normal.
"As time goes on, the air outside a building will ultimately equal the air outside, so for homes, restaurants, delicatessens, the air quality inside will pretty much match the air quality outside, especially as this thing goes on for a few days," Caravanos said.
The smoky skies are the result of more than 160 forest fires burning in Quebec during what federal officials say is shaping up to be among Canada's worst fire seasons ever.
With more than 480 wilderness firefighters on the ground, Quebec can fight around 30 fires, Quebec Premier Franois Legault told reporters Monday, adding that normally firefighters would come from other provinces to help.
"When I talk to the premiers of other provinces, they have their hands full," Legault told a briefing in Quebec City.
On Friday afternoon there were 324 fires burning across Canada. As of Monday morning that had grown to 413, and by late afternoon, the total jumped again.
Click here for the latest alerts from the NWS
"The situation remains serious," Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair said. "The images that we have seen so far this season are some of the most severe we have we have ever witnessed in Canada and the current forecast for the next few months indicates the potential for continued higher-than-normal fire activity."
More than 160 fires have been reported in Quebec including at least 114 that are out of control. More than 173,000 hectares have burned this year in Quebec's "intensive protection fire zone" - the area where normally all fires are actively fought - compared with a 10-year average of 247 hectares as of the same date, Quebec's wildfire prevention agency, SOPFEU said.
While there will be improvements on the way for the smoky skies from the Midwest to Northeast in the coming days, the wildfire situation in Canada continues to look dire so there will likely be more rounds of smoke in the coming weeks impacting parts of the U.S.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Source: WABC-TV
