Smoke from Canada’s wildfires just won’t clear as it engulfs the Northeast and mid-Atlantic regions of the U.S., raising health concerns for over 100 million people under persistent poor air quality.
The wildfire smoke continues to push across the region as air quality alerts have been posted from the Midwest to the Northeast and down to the mid-Atlantic and Carolinas.
New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington all woke up Thursday with a significant amount of smoke and haze in the air. The FOX Forecast Center said as winds start to shift during the afternoon, New York and Philly should begin to see a gradual improvement, but unhealthy air quality will remain focused over the Baltimore-Washington corridor while also spreading west toward Pittsburgh and the Ohio Valley.
WHAT’S THE STATUS OF CANADIAN WILDFIRES SENDING SMOKE INTO THE US, AND WHEN WILL IT END?
The FAA said reduced visibility from wildfire smoke will continue to impact air travel Thursday. Aviation officials said they will likely need to take steps to manage the flow of traffic safely into New York City, Washington DC, Philadelphia and Charlotte.
Flight disruptions could be seen Thursday morning after a ground stop was issued at LaGuardia Airport, with the possibility of more airports to follow their commands.
New York City set a record Wednesday for the worst air quality the city has ever seen on record as the skies plunged into an orange-tinged darkness.
“Unfortunately, this morning, it’s going to be tough,” FOX Weather meteorologist Britta Merwin said. “We are not expecting the air quality to improve before getting into the afternoon, and those improvements will not be huge in the afternoon.”
SEE EERIE ORANGE SKIES OVER NEW YORK CITY AS CANADIAN WILDFIRE SMOKE BLANKETS NORTHEAST
The hazardous air quality in New York City made it impossible for a number of Hamilton artists to perform on Broadway. Producers said the shows will resume as scheduled Thursday even as heavy smoke continues to create hazardous conditions. You can click here to see real-time air quality data for the Big Apple.
New York City Public Schools were already set to be closed Thursday and will remain closed, New York Mayor Eric Adams said. Given the air-quality conditions expected, district administration announced it would be a remote-work day for staff.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul said Buffalo and western New York could experience worse conditions and bad air quality Thursday. The state will be giving out 1 million free N-95 masks available at state facilities across New York.
“We believe that the N-95 mask is an important way that people can protect, stop the air particles from getting into their lungs,” she said.
New York state is expected to receive an additional 600,000 N-95 masks from the Department of Homeland Security. Officials highlight this is not mandatory but voluntary and decisions should be based on your health.
WHAT TO DO WHEN WILDFIRE SMOKE SMOTHERS YOUR AREA, AND HOW TO KEEP YOUR HOME’S AIR CLEAN
Animals have also been affected by the wildfire smoke. The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) has canceled training on Thursday at Belmont Park and Saratoga Race Course due to poor air quality conditions.
A decision regarding Thursday’s live racing program, which has a first post of 3:05 p.m. EDT, will be made Thursday morning following a review of the air quality conditions and forecast.
The Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, and the 155th running $1.5 million Belmont Stakes, is expected to be still held Saturday.
Due to the ongoing air conditions in the greater Syracuse area in central New York, country music headliner Chris Stapleton has postponed Thursday night’s show at St. Joseph’s Health Amphitheater at Lakeview. The rescheduled date has not yet been announced.
“To be quite honest, what we need is a change in wind direction,” Merwin said. “That’s not going to happen until this weekend.”
On Saturday, winds move in from the south which will bring real results as things start to get better, she adds.