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Air Quality in NYC Could Gradually Improve Friday as U.S. Chips in to Fight Canada Wildfires

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  • Hazardous air quality levels continue to hit parts of the eastern U.S. on Thursday afternoon as smoke wafts over from wildfires in Canada, with major metro areas like Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C. and New York City set to endure dangerous air pollution throughout the day.
  • The hazy conditions have led to thousands of delayed flights and postponements of Major League Baseball games, and have prompted some people to hunker down indoors and don pandemic-era masks outside.
  • Air quality alerts are in effect in the Northeast and Midwest and could continue into Friday, when the wildfire smoke is expected to dissipate.

Hazardous air quality levels continue to hit parts of the eastern U.S. on Thursday afternoon as smoke wafts over from wildfires in Canada, with major metro areas like Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C. and New York City set to endure dangerous air pollution throughout the day.

The hazy conditions have caused thousands of delayed flights and postponements of Major League Baseball games, and have prompted some people to hunker down indoors and don pandemic-era masks outside.

Air quality alerts are in effect in the Northeast and Midwest and could continue into Friday, when the wildfire smoke is expected to dissipate. The smoke is forecast to push southward out of Canada on Thursday and move west into the Ohio River Valley on Friday, according to the National Weather Service.

New York City continues to have the worst air pollution in the world as of Thursday afternoon. However, smoke models do not currently indicate another large plume over the city and better air quality is expected on Friday, according to Mayor Eric Adams. The Washington and Baltimore regions have also been hit with the worst air quality in years.

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There are 437 active wildfires across Canada early Thursday, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center (CIFFC), 248 of which are labeled as out of control. The blazes are destroying huge swaths of Canadian forest during a wildfire season officials have said could become the worst the country has ever experienced.

As of Wednesday, roughly 9.4 million acres have burned and more than 20,000 people have been evacuated, Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair said during a briefing with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Canada officials anticipate the higher than normal wildfire activity to persist due to drought conditions and high temperatures.

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The U.S. has deployed over 600 firefighters and support personnel to Canada, the White House said. President Joe Biden, during a call with Trudeau on Wednesday, directed his administration to deploy “all available Federal firefighting assets” to Canada to help mitigate the blazes.

In this aerial image, an aircraft, center, flies near a wildfire burning near Barrington Lake in Shelburne County, Nova Scotia, on Wednesday, May 31, 2023.
Communications Nova Scotia | The Canadian Press | AP

In this aerial image, an aircraft, center, flies near a wildfire burning near Barrington Lake in Shelburne County, Nova Scotia, on Wednesday, May 31, 2023.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., on Thursday urged the Biden administration to double the number of U.S. Forest Service personnel who are helping address the fires.

“These unprecedented wildfires are a crisis for both Canada and the United States, so both nations must respond speedily and forcefully to contain the blazes,” Schumer said on the Senate floor.

Meanwhile, U.S. officials have continued to advise people impacted by the smoke to stay inside and wear masks outdoors. Children, older adults and people with preexisting respiratory problems are especially vulnerable.

Wildfire smoke releases fine particulate matter, called PM2.5, which enters the lungs and can cause health issues such as asthma and bronchitis.

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New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said that one million N95 masks will be distributed for free on Thursday: “I am encouraging everyone in impacted regions across the state to stay indoors and reduce your exposure to this harmful smoke until air quality improves,” Hochul said in a statement.

The Federal Aviation Administration announced Thursday morning that it had delayed all flights bound for Newark Liberty International Airport nationwide and had grounded departures to Philadelphia International Airport due to decreased visibility.

New York City has also shut down beaches and closed zoos in the Bronx and Central Park early to bring animals indoors. The MLB has postponed games in New York and Philadelphia.

Source: NBC New York

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