'Stay inside': Haze from wildfire smoke is worse than it looks

Monique Calello, Staunton News Leader
Updated ·6 min read

We will be updating the AQI here throughout the day. Data sources are pulled from IQAir.com, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, AccuWeather, National Weather Service and AirNow.gov.

  • 12 p.m. Friday: AQI in Staunton and Waynesboro is 117; unhealthy for sensitive groups. PM2.5 concentration in Staunton and Waynesboro is currently 8.4 times the WHO annual air quality guideline value, according to IQAir.com.

  • 8 a.m. Friday: Crozet, Virginia, has the 4th worst air quality index in the U.S. right now, according to IQAir.com. AQI is 151 (unhealthy). PM2.5 concentration in Crozet is currently 11.2 times the WHO annual air quality guideline value.

  • 7 a.m. Friday: AQI is 44 (fair), according to AccuWeather which is generally acceptable for most individuals. However, sensitive groups may experience minor to moderate symptoms from long-term exposure.

  • 4 a.m. Friday: AQI is 54 at Big Meadows, Shenandoah National Park; 12 at Harrisonburg VDOT in Rockingham County; 122 at Albamarle High School, according to Va Dept. of Environmental Quality

The sun rising through haze from the Canada wildfires, on June 7, 2023. Taken from the Food Lion Parking lot on N. Coalter St.
The sun rising through haze from the Canada wildfires, on June 7, 2023. Taken from the Food Lion Parking lot on N. Coalter St.

STAUNTON — The moment you open your front door, the smell of smoke hits you in the face.

"It's scary, to be honest," said Bradley Lyle, a UPS driver out delivering packages in Staunton on Thursday morning.

Dennis Ward was eating breakfast at Cranberry's this morning. When he went home and put on a N95 mask he immediately felt better, he said. In New York, one million N95 filtering masks will be made available across the state.

For people with lung and heart conditions, sensitive groups like children and the immune-compromised, the air quality can become deadly once it reaches the poor and unhealthy ranges. The Air Quality Index (AQI) fell within the poor range early this morning in Staunton. As of 11 a.m., the AQI was 79. By noon, it reached 101 which falls within the unhealthy range.

Air Quality Index reaches unhealthy levels in Staunton

Everything happening along the northeast from the Canadian wildfires moved west Thursday morning and is here in the Valley now.

  • AQI is 102 (orange/unhealthy) in Staunton as of 1:45 p.m. Source: Plume Labs per AccuWeather.

  • AQI is 221 (purple/very unhealthy) in Albamarle County at 12:20 p.m. Source: Virginia Dept. of Environmental Quality

  • AQI is 173 (red/unhealthy) at Big Meadows in Shenandoah National Park. Source: Virginia Dept. of Environmental Quality

Health effects can be immediately felt by sensitive groups once the Air Quality Index reaches poor and unhealthy levels. Healthy individuals may experience difficulty breathing and throat irritation with prolonged exposure.

The U.S. AQI is EPA’s index for reporting air quality.
The U.S. AQI is EPA’s index for reporting air quality.

It came earlier than anticipated, said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson, about the anticipated plume of smoke blanketing the northeast. The plume of smoke expanded and we are going to see smoky conditions, he said. This plume of smoke went down to western New York, western Pennsylvania and into central and western Virginia and West Virginia Thursday morning with a decrease in air quality and visibility.

By Thursday night, Anderson expects the core of the smoke to shift back east again.

"The upside is the plume of smoke that discharged over southern Ontario is not reaching the ground," said Anderson. "Hopefully, it will stay that way."

Five major pollutants contribute to Air Quality Index

EPA establishes an AQI for five major air pollutants regulated by the Clean Air Act, according to AirNow.gov. Each of these pollutants has a national air quality standard set by EPA to protect public health:

  • ground-level ozone

  • particle pollution (also known as particulate matter, including PM2.5 and PM10)

  • carbon monoxide

  • sulfur dioxide

  • nitrogen dioxide

The allergy outlook in Staunton on Thursday only makes a bad situation worse. Tree and grass pollen levels are high, dust and dander is very high and ragweed pollen and mold are moderate, according to AccuWeather.

What exactly happened?

With smoke from hundreds of miles north clouding the scene, the Marine Corps honor color guard rehearses on Thursday with the Washington Monument in the background in Washington, D.C. Canadian wildfires are blanketing the northeastern United States in a dystopian haze that reaches into parts of mid-Atlantic and even Southern states.
With smoke from hundreds of miles north clouding the scene, the Marine Corps honor color guard rehearses on Thursday with the Washington Monument in the background in Washington, D.C. Canadian wildfires are blanketing the northeastern United States in a dystopian haze that reaches into parts of mid-Atlantic and even Southern states.

The stagnant weather pattern combined with high pressure over the Northern Plains and low pressure over the Atlantic and Canada created a persistent northernly wind and flow of air coming down from Quebec and Ontario into the middle Atlantic states. This weather system created very dry conditions that suppressed the rain and thunderstorms across the plains and deep south.

"So we're basically been stuck in a dry weather pattern," said Anderson. "Not necessarily hot but certainly very dry. We also have a lot of fires going on up across Quebec. These big fires are producing a tremendous amount of smoke and haze. And we've seen several plumes of the smoke being shifted southward into the middle Atlantic region, including the northeast over the past few days."

Between dry conditions, the breezy weather, the fire risks are also higher than usual in the Shenandoah Valley, central Virginia and West Virginia regions, Anderson added.

In the northeast, airports in New York and New Jersey were at a ground stop Wednesday due to low visibility and very poor air quality.

When will the air quality get better in the Shenandoah Valley?

"The good news is we do expect a storm to approach by the end of the weekend from the west and that's going to turn the winds around coming back from the south and southwest so that should start pushing the smoke back up towards Canada by late Sunday into Monday," said Anderson.

The air quality should improve in central Virginia and West Virginia come Sunday when the winds are expected to shift.

How can I protect myself and loved ones?

"Stay inside," said Anderson. "If you can't stay inside and have to work, try to limit your exposure. Avoid exercise because that means you're going to be taking a lot more smoke into your lungs."

The air quality may cause problems with breathing, coughing, sneezing and watery eyes. If you can set your home HVAC system to fan, this will circulate air through the filter removing some of the particulate pollution. The News Leader is reaching out to experts for tips on how to keep your indoors as healthy as possible. We will update here.

"The best advice right now, especially people sensitive to smoke is to avoid being outside for an extended period of time," said Anderson. "If you have to go outside, take it slow."

Where to track the air quality index

The U.S. Air Quality Index, or AQI, is the Environmental Protection Agency's tool for communicating daily air quality.

You can track the air quality at: https://fire.airnow.gov

More info is here: https://www.airnow.gov/aqi/aqi-basics/

Air quality monitoring and forecasts are done by the states. The National Weather Service helps to disseminate these air quality forecasts. For more information on air quality, including ground-level ozone and fine particles, visit your state’s website.

Climate Reality in Virginia: We can't hide from climate reality in Virginia. Drifting smoke is showing that.

The Lower Manhattan skyline and Brooklyn Bridge are obscured by hazy skies on June 7, 2023, in New York City. Smoke and haze from large forest fires in Canada have covered the New York City region, blocking out sunlight and pushing the air quality index to hazardous levels.
The Lower Manhattan skyline and Brooklyn Bridge are obscured by hazy skies on June 7, 2023, in New York City. Smoke and haze from large forest fires in Canada have covered the New York City region, blocking out sunlight and pushing the air quality index to hazardous levels.

This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: 'Stay inside': Haze from wildfire smoke is worse than it looks