What happened
More than 100 wildfires are burning out of control in Canada this week, sending plumes of smoke south across the border to blanket parts of the Northeast and Midwest and turning skies orange. Poor air quality triggered health warnings across multiple states including New York, Michigan and Massachusetts. In Canada, Toronto’s air quality briefly registered as the worst of any city in the world.
Who said what
The “primary health concern” with wildfire smoke is fine particulate matter, which can “bypass the body’s defenses” when inhaled, Canadian physician Dr. Farhan M. Asrar said at The Conversation. The “best thing to do” is to keep a close eye on the air quality in your area, Heatmap News said. This summer’s wildfire activity in Canada is “nowhere near the hyperactivity of 2023,” CNN said, but “planet-heating fossil fuel pollution is increasing the chance of prolonged smoke seasons.”
What next?
Forecasters expect air quality to remain poor across the Midwest and Northeast on Thursday and possibly Friday. It’s “too early to determine the weekend outlook,” The Wall Street Journal said.
Large swaths of the US remain under air quality warnings
