From CNN's Derek Van Dam and Rachel Ramirez
As wildfires in Canada blanket Northeast America, an expert recommends some steps to help people protect themselves.
“If you can see or smell smoke, know that you’re being exposed,” said William Barrett, the national senior director of clean air advocacy with the American Lung Association.
“It’s important that you do everything you can to remain indoors during those high, high pollution episodes, and it’s really important to keep an eye on your health or any development of symptoms,” he added.
People who are particularly vulnerable to wildfire smoke include “children, senior citizens, people who are pregnant or people with respiratory or cardiovascular diseases” whose symptoms may worsen or newly develop when exposed to smoke, Barrett noted.
“Really, make sure you take appropriate steps to check in with health care providers about any concerning symptoms that come up during these events,” Barrett said.
CNN’s Robert Shackelford, Jennifer Gray and Monica Garrett contributed to this report.
Biden briefed on smoke spreading over northeastern US
From CNN's Arlette Saenz
President Joe Biden has been briefed and continues to receive updates on the smoke spreading over parts of the US, including Washington, DC, from wildfires in Canada, a White House official tells CNN. He has received these briefings for a few days.
The White House has been in touch with state and local leaders, including those in Michigan, Illinois and New York, the official said, while the Environmental Protection Agency has been in contact with state and local leaders and tribal governments across the country. The administration has encouraged communities to keep tabs on the latest air quality in their area through the government website AirNow.gov.
The US is also assisting Canada battle the fires, with 600 US firefighters and personnel on hand, the official said, adding that the US has deployed water bombers to help in the efforts. Members of the National Security Council have been in touch with the Canadian government as well.
Smoke haze could lead to flight delays, FAA says
From CNN's Pete Muntean
The extreme smoke haze lingering over the northeastern US could delay flights through Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, DC, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
Wind and haze from Canada's wildfires have been reported at New York, Philadelphia and DC-area airports, according to the FAA’s daily air traffic report.
“There are some fires in Canada that have been producing some smoke due to the wind patterns and it is now impacting the northeast of the US,” said FAA’s Sam Ausby in a video posted by the agency on Twitter. “So, from Boston, the New York metro area, Philadelphia and the DC metro area are all experiencing some smoke that could impact travel to the airports.”
As of 12 p.m. ET, airlines in the US have canceled 71 flights and delayed another 1,042, according to tracking site FlightAware.
Aviation weather reports show that Newark Liberty International Airport is among the East Coast airports where visibility is the lowest, at two miles just before noon. Smoke does not necessarily pose a major safety hazard for commercial flights, which can operate normally without visual reference to the ground or horizon.
Residents in these areas are being warned to stay indoors and limit outdoor activities
From CNN staff
A number of cities and counties are issuing recommendations for their residents as smoke from Canada's wildfires impacts regions in the United States. Here's what we know:
Westchester County, New York: The county that lies just north of New York City has advised all residents “limit any strenuous outdoor activity" and has encouraged those with respiratory conditions or heart disease to stay indoors as much as possible.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The city's Department of Public Health Communications Director James Garrow warned residents to remain indoors and avoid strenuous outdoor activities, adding that people sensitive to the air quality — including those with heart and lung conditions, pregnant people, and the elderly and very young — may experience more serious health effects. He also encouraged masks for when people need to be outdoors.
New York City: Residents are being urged to stay indoors as air quality continues to deteriorate, the mayor said in a statement Tuesday.
CNN's Kristina Sgueglia and Liam Reilly contributed reporting to this post.
Air quality will worsen this afternoon as thick smoke plume drifts toward some major cities in the Northeast
From CNN's Dave Hennen
The latest satellite pictures from NOAA are showing another thick plume of smoke that is leading to level 6 of 6 — “hazardous” air quality in parts of the US.
Syracuse, New York, currently has an air quality index (AQI) of 351, which is considered to be a level 6 of 6 or “hazardous,” where all outdoor physical activity should be avoided.
That thick smoke is drifting south and is expected to worsen air quality this afternoon in places like New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, DC.
Air quality currently in the unhealthy range could drop even further into very unhealthy range for periods of time this afternoon and evening.
These cities in the Northeast are experiencing unhealthy air quality indexes
From CNN’s Celina Tebor
Cities and metro regions across the northeastern United States are experiencing unhealthy air quality, according to data from the US Air Quality Index, as smoke coming from wildfires in Canada impacts the region.
Air quality index (AQI) is designed to communicate whether air quality is healthy or unhealthy (above 150).
Major metropolitan cities across Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut have AQIs above 150, according to the government website AirNow.gov.
As of Wednesday morning, the following cities have AQIs classified as unhealthy:
Philadelphia residents were warned to remain indoors and avoid strenuous outdoor activities due to the air quality, the city's Department of Public Health Communications Director James Garrow told CNN, adding that people sensitive to the air quality — including those with heart and lung conditions, pregnant people, and the elderly and very young — may experience more serious health effects.
He also encouraged masks for when people need to be outdoors.
NYC's air quality health advisory expected to remain in place for several days, official says
From CNN’s Celina Tebor
Poor air quality in New York City from wildfires in Canada “has never impacted us on this scale before,” New York Mayor Eric Adams said during a press conference Wednesday.
The air quality in New York City Tuesday was the worst air quality in the city since the 1960s, according to New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene Commissioner Ashwin Vasan.
Officials recommended New Yorkers use a high-quality mask if they have to be outside.
Conditions are expected to deteriorate further Wednesday afternoon and evening, but are anticipated to improve later Wednesday night through Thursday morning, Adams said.
New York City is not seeing an uptick in emergency room visits due to complications from the air quality, Vasan said, but he warned that could change.
Advisory will likely be around for days: The city's air quality health advisory will be extended to at least midnight Wednesday and likely into the next couple of days, according to NYC Emergency Management Commissioner Zachary Iscol.
“We expect this to be a multiple-day event, so we expect that that advisory to remain in place for the next few days,” he said.
Smoke is notoriously difficult to forecast, Iscol said.
Climate change has worsened conditions that allow wildfires to ignite and grow
From CNN's Derek Van Dam and Rachel Ramirez
Human-caused climate change has exacerbated the hot and dry conditions that allow wildfires to ignite and grow. Scientists recently reported that millions of acres scorched by wildfires in the western US and Canada — an area roughly the size of South Carolina — could be traced back to carbon pollution from the world’s largest fossil fuel and cement companies.
And when they burn, the smoke can travel thousands of miles downstream, putting millions more people in harm’s way.
“Wildfires is very much so a global warming issue,” Glory Dolphin Hammes, CEO of IQAir North America, previously told CNN. “It has very much to do with climate change, which is creating essentially unsafe conditions.”
CNN’s Robert Shackelford, Jennifer Gray and Monica Garrett contributed to this report.
Wildfires have burned 15 times the normal area in Canada this year. Here's a look at the numbers
From CNN's Robert Shackelford
The smoke impacting various parts of the US is caused by wildfires raging in Canada.
If you're just getting caught up today, here's what you need to know about the blazes:
- More than 9 million acres have been charred by wildfires in Canada so far this year — about double the size of New Jersey. For Canada as a whole, this is about 15 times the normal burned area for this point in the year.
- More than 2,300 fires have ignited across Canada this year.
- In Quebec alone, nearly 1 million acres have been burned this year, and more than 430 wildfires have ignited across Quebec so far in 2023 — twice the average for this time of year.
- There are more than 150 active wildfires burning in Quebec this week, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center – more than double the number of fires burning in any other Canadian province.