Wildfires, Winds and the Climate Crisis: New York City Public Schools, Public Schools and the National Center for Disaster Preparedness, Columbia New Jersey, Sen. Jeffrey Schlegelmilch

“This is something that I think even for folks who are not involved to kind of pay attention to, because this is the type of situation that we are expecting, and that’s what I think,” said Jeffrey Schlegelmilch, director of the National Center for Disaster Preparedness at Columbia

New Jersey’s governor said in a statement Wednesday that the wildfires in Canada and other extreme weather events are proof of the intensifying climate crisis.

Climate change is to blame for the longer wildfire seasons and the blazes burning more acres, according to experts.

According to the National Weather Service, unhealthy air quality levels are expected to persist in the coastal Northeast on Thursday, before the smoke moves into the interior Northeast and the Ohio Valley on Friday.

Flannigan says the fire season in Canada is unprecedented and could become a record. Hundreds of fires have been burning in Canada—some for days or weeks—usually started by human activity or lightning, then fed by dry vegetation, and worsened by hot, dry, windy weather. Rising warm air on land has lofted that smoke to between 5,000 feet and 20,000 feet high, where the haze gets rapidly transported south and east in strong winds.

New York City’s public school system canceled all outdoor activities because of the weather. Washington, D.C., public schools did the same, scrapping recess, outdoor physical education classes and other events outside.

An Update on Wildfire Smoke in the U.S.: The Case of Covid and Other Influences on the Immune System, Public Health and Public Health

“Unless more fires start burning, I don’t expect the concentrations to go up too much higher,” DeCarlo said. We’re going to get a shift in the weather pattern which is going to push that smoke away from us.

Peter DeCarlo, an associate professor of environmental health and engineering at Johns Hopkins University, told NPR that weather conditions in the U.S. were making it possible for wildfire smoke to spread over the region.

Some areas advised people to stay inside, avoid travel, and refrain from strenuous activity, in order to help the environment.

But authorities from New England to as far south as Georgia were warning people to beware of poor air quality and the health problems that can result from breathing in too much smoke.

Millions of people along the East Coast and further inland woke up to a cloud of hazy air Wednesday morning, after smoke from rampant wildfires in Canada floated south across the border and blanketed large swaths of the U.S.

This kind of pollution can weaken the immune system. According to a study, Covid19 cases and deaths in California, Oregon, and Washington were exacerbated by increases in fine particulate air pollution from wildfire smoke. As a professor of biostatistics and data science at the Harvard T.H. Chan, I believe it is important to avoid any exposure to fine outdoor matter, as well as getting sick, when it’s Covid or any other virus. “Your ability to fight the virus is less effective.”

Reduce your exposure to the particulate matter in wildfire smoke by staying indoors as much as possible, wearing an N95 or a similar respirator outside and limiting strenuous activity.

Stanford’s satellite data, which shows the researchers where smoke plumes have spread, goes back to 2006. The population and severity of the smoke make it unlikely that any event before then was much worse. Since then, the population has grown and the fires have become uncontrollable.

How Do You Know Your Air Quality? Telling Your Pet About the Greatest Events in the World, Explains Marshall Burke in a Phone Call from The Verge

Marshall Burke, an associate professor at the University of Michigan, got the results of his team’s analysis in a phone call from The Verge. “Jesus,” he says — audibly surprised, even though he expected the numbers to be bad. It is really remarkable. The number is honestly pretty shocking.”

Americans get an average of those figures. Some people in the worst-hit areas were exposed to as much as 500 micrograms, an “insanely high level,” according to Burke. Parts of upstate New York and New York City were the hardest hit.

Burke says this is an historic event. Historic events are getting more common as a result of climate change. “In some sense it feels like a wake up call … It feels like a taste of something to come, he says.

Experts advise owners to keep a pet go bag, which includes food, water, medicine, first aid supplies, a leash and harness, and toys, in case your family needs to evacuate.

The American Veterinary Medical Association advises that animals stay indoors as much as possible when the air quality is bad and that they only get brief bathroom breaks outside. Birds should stay indoors when it’s smoky.

Colorado Public Radio quoted a University of Denver professor saying that people can use air filters, monitor the air quality around them and seal up openings in their doors and windows.

The air quality is quantified using a scale that goes from zero to 500 with a lower number indicating better air quality and anything over 300 being hazardous.

The fine particles can get into the deeper part of your lungs, which is why it is worse than smaller particulate matter.

These tiny droplets can be harmful to human health and hang in the air. Particles are a major source of air pollution.

If you’re interested in learning more about fire related terms, here’s a breakdown of what experts say are the best ways to protect yourself and your family.