An eye-watering and cough-inducing smoky haze from Canadian wildfires smothered a swath of the eastern and northern US on Tuesday, with officials warning residents with health risks to stay indoors and keep their windows closed.
Health alerts were issued from New York to the Carolinas, and as far west as Minnesota. In New York City, the smoke could be tasted as well as smelled, and it wrapped the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building and Manhattan’s other landmarks in a blanket of orange-gray haze.
IQAir, a technology company that tracks air quality and pollution, said New York’s air quality was among the worst in the world on Tuesday night; the city usually does not rank in the top 3,000. Currently the city’s air ranges up to 168 on its 0 to 500 scale (the higher the number, the greater the level of air pollution), having reached as high as 222 overnight.
In Oswego, New York, on Lake Ontario, the smoke created a haze that settled over the city Tuesday and gave the sky a yellowish tint most of the day. By evening, a steady breeze had picked up, but the smell of smoke was still detectable and the streets were mostly empty. In Manhattan, some commuters were startled bythe smell. “In morning, it smelled like burnt toast, but now it’s more like campfire,” said Benjamin Lukas.
In North Carolina, the department of environmental Quality said the state would be under Code Red or Code Orange air quality alerts through Wednesday
Health alerts were issued from New York to the Carolinas, and as far west as Minnesota. In New York City, the smoke could be tasted as well as smelled, and it wrapped the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building and Manhattan’s other landmarks in a blanket of orange-gray haze.
IQAir, a technology company that tracks air quality and pollution, said New York’s air quality was among the worst in the world on Tuesday night; the city usually does not rank in the top 3,000. Currently the city’s air ranges up to 168 on its 0 to 500 scale (the higher the number, the greater the level of air pollution), having reached as high as 222 overnight.
In Oswego, New York, on Lake Ontario, the smoke created a haze that settled over the city Tuesday and gave the sky a yellowish tint most of the day. By evening, a steady breeze had picked up, but the smell of smoke was still detectable and the streets were mostly empty. In Manhattan, some commuters were startled bythe smell. “In morning, it smelled like burnt toast, but now it’s more like campfire,” said Benjamin Lukas.
In North Carolina, the department of environmental Quality said the state would be under Code Red or Code Orange air quality alerts through Wednesday