© Reuters. The Manhattan skyline is covered in haze and smoke from a wildfire in Canada, in New York, US, June 7, 2023. REUTERS/Amr El Faki
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Written by Tyler Clifford
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Schools across the U.S. East Coast canceled outdoor activities, air traffic slowed and millions of Americans were told to stay home on Wednesday as smoke from Canadian wildfires drifted south, blanketing cities in a thick yellow haze.
The US National Weather Service has issued air quality alerts for nearly the entire Atlantic coast. Health officials from Vermont to South Carolina and as far west as Ohio and Kansas have warned residents that spending time outdoors may cause respiratory problems due to high levels of fine particulate matter in the atmosphere.
“It is critical that Americans experiencing dangerous air pollution, especially those with health conditions, listen to local authorities to protect themselves and their families,” President Joe Biden said on Twitter.
The US private forecast service AccuWeather said the thick haze and soot extending from higher elevations to ground level represented the worst spread of wildfire smoke to cover the US Northeast in more than 20 years.
The famous New York skyline, usually visible for miles, seemed to vanish in an otherworldly veil of smoke, which some residents said made them feel unwell.
“It makes it hard to breathe,” said Muhammad Abbas as he walked down Broadway in Manhattan. “I was scheduled to take a road test to drive, to get my driver’s license today, and it has been cancelled.”
The smoky air was especially harsh on industrious outdoorsmen, like Chris Ricciardi, owner of Neighbor’s Envy Landscaping in Roxbury, New Jersey. He said he and his staff have cut back hours and are wearing the masks they used for heavy pollen.
“We don’t have the luxury of downtime,” he said. “We want to minimize our exposure to smoke, but what can you really do about it?”
Angel Emmanuel Ramirez, 29, a couturier at a Givenchy outlet in Manhattan, said he and his colleagues started feeling sick and closed the store early when they realized the smell of smoke was permeating the store.
“It’s so intense, you would think the wildfires were happening directly across the river, not in Canada,” Ramirez said.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul called the situation an “emergency crisis,” saying the air pollution index in parts of her state was eight times higher than normal.
Reduced visibility from the fog forced the FAA to slow air traffic into the New York City area and Philadelphia from elsewhere on the East Coast and upper Midwest, with flight delays averaging about a half hour.
Schools up and down the East Coast have canceled outdoor activities, including sports, field trips, and recesses.
A Broadway rehearsal for “Prima Facie” stopped after 10 minutes when actress Jodie Comer had difficulty breathing due to the poor air quality. The show has resumed, with Danny Arlington, understudy, continuing as Tessa, a production spokesperson said in a statement.
Even Major League Baseball has been affected, with both the New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies postponing home games scheduled for Wednesday. Also rescheduled was the Women’s National Soccer League game in Harrison, New Jersey, as well as the WNBA women’s basketball game in Brooklyn.
In some areas, the Air Quality Index (AQI), which measures major pollutants including particulate matter from fires, was well above 400, according to Airnow, which rates 100 as “unhealthy” and 300 as “hazardous.”
At noon (1600 GMT), Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, had the worst air quality index in the country, with an AQI reading of 410. Among major cities, New York had the highest AQI in the world on Wednesday afternoon at 342, i.e. Weak pointer. For chronically polluted cities like Dubai (168) and Delhi (164), according to IQAir.
Smoke crossing from Canada
Smoke billowed across the US border from Canada as hundreds of wildfires ravaged 9.4 million acres (3.8 million hectares) and forced 120,000 people from their homes in an unusually early and intense start to the wildfire season.
The skies over New York and several other North American cities grew progressively darker during Wednesday, with an eerie yellow tint seeping through the smoky canopy. The air smelled like burning wood.
Wildfire smoke has been linked to higher rates of heart attacks and strokes, increased emergency room visits for asthma and other respiratory conditions, eye irritation, itchy skin and rashes, among other problems.
a Home Depot (NYSE:) in Manhattan air purifiers and masks were sold out. New York Road Runners has canceled events that were intended to celebrate World Running Day.
New York Mayor Eric Adams advised: “This is not the day to train for a marathon or to do an outdoor event with your kids.” “If you are older, have heart or breathing problems, or are an adult, you should stay indoors.”
Pedestrians donned face masks in numbers reminiscent of the worst days of the coronavirus pandemic.
Playing chess in Manhattan’s Union Square as he has most days in 30 years, but wearing a mask, Tyrone Sylvester, 66, said he had never seen air quality in the city this bad.
Pointing to the bronze-like orb visible through the smoky sky, he said, “When the sun looks like this, we know something is wrong. This is what global warming looks like.”
Poor air quality is likely to continue into the weekend, AccuWeather said, with a developing storm system expected to shift smoke west across the Great Lakes and deeper south through the Ohio Valley and into the mid-Atlantic region.
