Hazardous smoke from Canadian wildfires expected to be gone from NC by Sunday
Updated Thursday evening.
North Carolinians can blame massive Canadian wildfires if they have trouble breathing this week. But conditions are improving this weekend.
Smoke from the fires has spread across much of North America, including North Carolina. As of Thursday, air quality forecasts had the entire state in Code Orange due to the amount of fine smoke particles in the air that people could breathe in. On Friday, most of the state is expected to improve to Code Yellow — moderate conditions. By Sunday, the state should be back to Code Green — good conditions.
The smoke particles are smaller than the width of a human hair and “can reach deep in the lungs and aggravate asthma and other lung conditions and have been linked to heart conditions,” the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality said in a news release.
“All citizens should consider limiting outdoor activities where possible,” Cumberland County Emergency Management Coordinator Garry Crumpler said in a news release Thursday. “Citizens with preexisting conditions such as heart or lung disease should pay close attention as the air quality could exacerbate some conditions.”
On Friday, most of North Carolina, including Cumberland County, is predicted to be in Code Yellow conditions, with only Mecklenburg and Union counties plus nine counties in the Triad area in Code Orange.
On Saturday, only the Triad is predicted to be in Code Orange, with the rest of the state in Code Yellow.
Earlier in the week, the Department of Environmental Quality said all 100 North Carolina counties were under a Code Red or Code Orange Air Quality Action Day on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the state was under Code Orange and Code Yellow conditions.
“Code Orange” means the air is unhealthy for some people, while “Code Red” means the air is unhealthy for everyone.
In Code Red, “Older adults, children, active people, and those with heart or lung disease may experience more serious health effects,” a description on the DEQ website says. “Everyone may experience health effects. Limit prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors.”
Code Orange means that the air is considered unhealthy for certain groups of people. “Sensitive populations — including older adults, younger children and those with respiratory conditions such as asthma — may experience health impacts when outdoors for prolonged times,” the DEQ news release says.
More: Smoke from wildfires in Canada prompt US air quality alerts. Here's a wildfire, smoke map.
Most counties along and east of Interstate 95, including Cumberland, Hoke, Harnett, New Hanover, Brunswick and Pender counties were in Code Orange on Wednesday. So were the western mountain counties, including Buncombe and Henderson counties.
Those in the central part of the state east of I-95 and into the western mountains, including Moore, Gaston and Cleveland Counties, were in Code Red on Wednesday.
More information is available at the state’s Air Quality Portal, airquality.climate.ncsu.edu.
Senior North Carolina reporter Paul Woolverton can be reached at 910-261-4710 and pwoolverton@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Smoke hazard from Canadian wildfires is easing in North Carolina
