Smoke from Canadian wildfires returns to NYC as air quality index deteriorates across the city

Josephine Stratman, New York Daily News
·2 min read
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NEW YORK — The downpour and heavy humidity may be gone, but smoke from Canadian wildfires is again on the way to NYC and is pushing the air quality index into unhealthy territory.

On Monday morning, the index started to rise again slowly, ticking into the “moderate” levels. Winds from the south and west are pushing a smoke plume from wildfires in Western Canada towards New York. By Monday afternoon, the index in Central Park had reached 144, close to the upper limit of the “Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups” level.

An air quality alert was issued for the entire state on Monday.

“New Yorkers should once again prepare for smoke from the wildfires in Western Canada to impact our state’s air quality this week,” Governor Kathy Hochul said, urging residents to keep tabs on the smoke situation.

James McDonald, New York State Department of Health Commissioner, warned children under 18, older adults, pregnant people and those with pre-existing conditions like heart disease or asthma to take precautions like wearing masks and staying indoors if the conditions get worse.

The air quality index, or AQI, runs from 0 to 500. Higher numbers indicate higher levels of air pollution.

There are currently over 800 wildfires burning across Canada. More than 4,000 fires in the country have raged this year to date, now causing three dangerous or potentially dangerous smoke events in New York.

Monday’s smoke event is not expected to mimic the dramatic smoke situation seen in the city in June, when the sky turned orange, the city reached a record-shattering 400 AQI and emergency room visits for asthma doubled.

The Adams administration was grilled for their response in a hearing last week. Elected leaders attacked Mayor Eric Adams and top city officials, claiming that the mayor and his team weren’t prepared and poorly communicated the smoke’s risks to New Yorkers.

“This is the new normal for New Yorkers,” Hochul said in a briefing last month, warning people that the impacts of climate change make another smoke event very possible.

N95-style masks will be available free at various locations around the city, including Grand Central Station, Penn Station, Atlantic Ave. in Brooklyn and the Grand Concourse in the Bronx.