- Canadian wildfires continue to burn, sending smoke to cover parts of the United States
- Hundreds of wildfires on Tuesday prompted officials to issue air quality alerts in various parts of Canada
- The situation has exacerbated an already active wildfire season in Canada that authorities expect will worsen
Hundreds of Canadian wildfires continue to burn, and they have started to spew out smoke that is reaching some American states, causing a deterioration of air quality in the regions.
The fires that affected some US states on Tuesday continued to burn across the Canadian region, forcing authorities to issue air quality alerts from Minnesota to Massachusetts. A layer of haze in Ontario covered parts of Ottawa and Toronto.
Canadian Wildfires Spew Out Smoke
Officials in these areas quickly warned residents about the poor air quality resulting from the wildfire smoke. The fumes also flew over parts of New York State and Vermont. Due to the situation, the entirety of New York City was placed under an air quality alert on Tuesday. Later that afternoon, the Manhattan skyline was obscured by hazy skies, as per the New York Times.
On Tuesday, more than 400 active wildfires burned throughout Canada, which officials say exacerbated an already active wildfire season. The Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre said that more than 200 wildfires were burning out of control.
Quebec was said to be the most affected by wildfires in eastern Canada as of early Tuesday afternoon, having more than 150 active fires across its territory. Local officials noted that residents in some areas were encouraged to shut their windows and doors shut to keep toxic smoke out.
Video footage and various images showed that some wildfires continued burning for miles, sending a blanket of dark smoke into the sky. During a Monday news conference, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that he was already in contact with local officials across the country regarding the wildfires.
According to NBC News, this comes as the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency also posted on Twitter, saying that the blanket of smoke coming from wildfires in Quebec will continue to linger across east central and southeast Minnesota.
Toxic Fumes
The officials from the agency added that the air quality in the affected areas was expected to improve in the evening as thunderstorms help in dispersing the smoke particles from the air. The series of wildfires marks one of the worst starts to Canada's wildfire season in recorded history. Last week, federal officials revealed that more than 6.7 million acres have already burned this year.
On the other hand, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation issued a health advisory for several counties, including New York, Bronx, and Queens. State officials urged residents to consider limiting any strenuous outdoor physical activity so they could reduce the risk of adverse health effects.
Smoke coming from wildfires can harm people's health even at low concentrations, and individuals who suffer from lung or heart diseases as well as the elderly, young children, and pregnant women, are at higher risk from the toxic fumes, said Reuters.
