Health officials in New York City are urging residents to “listen to their bodies” as smoke from Canadian wildfires is expected to cloud the air in New York City on Monday, making air quality potentially hazardous.
Mayor Eric Adams sounded the alarm this weekend after forecasts suggested wildfire smog could reach the city at dawn Monday, causing noticeably hazy skies.
The Department of Environmental Conservation predicted a ‘moderate’ air quality index (AQI) of 55, indicating that ‘there may be some risk to people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution.’
However, AQI monitoring website IQAir reported an index of 61 on Monday morning and warned that the concentration of harmful pollutants in the air was 3.3 times the safe standard set by the World Health Organization.
And the monitoring agency predicts the AQI will deteriorate over the course of the week, rising to 71 on Tuesday and not returning to safe levels until Friday.
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New York City was shrouded in smoke this summer due to Canadian wildfires. Pictured above: A person wearing a face mask in the haze that blanketed New York in June
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, smoke inhalation can cause a variety of health effects, including headaches, sinus problems, difficulty breathing, fatigue and asthma attacks.
Although the city could see smoky skies, officials said the air quality index would not be anywhere near the dangerous levels residents saw during the summer, making for orange-hued skies that obscured famous skyscrapers and prompted New Yorkers to get outside putting on face masks.
“While we continue to actively monitor potential air quality concerns for Monday morning, impacts are currently expected to be mild, although New Yorkers will likely see hazy skies tomorrow morning,” Adams said Sunday.
“All day tomorrow, New Yorkers should listen to their bodies, especially if they have pre-existing health conditions, and take the necessary precautions to ensure they stay safe. We will continue to update New Yorkers as the forecasts strengthen.”
The state has not yet issued any health warnings, although New York Emergency Management Commissioner Zach Iscol said “everyone should stay informed and take appropriate precautions.”
AQI levels in some parts of the city shot above 400, an 800 percent increase over what are considered “safe” levels.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned that long-term exposure to unhealthy levels of smoke can lead to lasting effects such as sleep problems and heart problems.
For example, according to the Sleep Foundationfine particles from wildfire smoke can enter the blood and travel to the frontal cortex and cerebellum of the brain – the parts that control sleep – disrupting them.
At the same time, the particles can also reduce the ability of red blood cells to carry oxygen, meaning the heart has to work harder.
This extra work can also make someone else more tired.
Another risk is that the smog can actually damage the skin – and accelerate the development of wrinkles.
The particles penetrate the skin and, when this happens, trigger an immune response that causes inflammation.
This in turn can damage the skin cells and cause them to lose their structure, increasing the risk of wrinkles.
A 2021 study JAMA Dermatology found that short-term exposure to this smoke can cause flare-ups of skin conditions such as psoriasis and eczema. These can appear even weeks later.
NYC’s official guidelines suggest limiting strenuous outdoor activities and wearing an N95 or KN95 face mask.
The warnings come three months after a band of orange haze engulfed the city following a series of Canadian wildfires. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated that in some major cities, such as New York, breathing in the smog was equivalent to smoking as many as 25 cigarettes.