While the sky didn’t look orange like it did earlier this month, dangerous smog returned to the Big Apple on Thursday.
Smoke from Canada’s raging wildfires has drifted south in recent days, leaving dozens of states in the Northeast in a thick haze.
An air quality warning issued by the National Weather Service, covering New York City, Long Island and the mid-Hudson region, has now been extended through Friday night, while a similar warning in New Jersey ran through Thursday night.
Officials warn people with compromised respiratory systems, the elderly and young people to mask and limit outdoor activities if tThe air quality for New York City remained above 150, in the unhealthy category.
It is said that it is even worse on the subway platforms.
On Thursday, hazy conditions returned to the Big Apple as smoke from the Canadian wildfires drifted south
Smoky conditions obscured the sun as it set over 42nd Street Thursday as air quality deteriorated
Smoke from wildfires in Canada envelops Lower Manhattan and One World Trade Center in a view from the 86th floor of the Empire State Building
The Statue of Liberty is barely visible in the smog of the Canadian wildfires
“The truth is there is no end in sight,” New York Governor Kathy Hochul said at a news conference Thursday, noting that smoky conditions could linger on and off all summer.
“This is the new normal for New Yorkers,” she said.
As of Thursday night, forecasts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration show that the worst air is still west of the city — and is expected to remain that way through the end of the week.
It remains unclear whether these terms will remain in effect for the July 4 holiday.
“We don’t know what’s going to happen in the next few days — today is going to be really bad, tomorrow is going to be really bad,” Hochul said.
“We expect the wind to decrease in the coming days. It is currently impossible for us to predict the holidays.’
Weather forecasts have predicted rain for much of the region for the rest of the week, which if true, could offset the influx of smoke by pushing particles out of the air in a process called wet deposition.
Meanwhile, health officials are urging people with breathing problems to stay indoors.
“The sensitive people — those who are most vulnerable, the seniors, the very young, those, maybe with pre-existing breathing problems, asthma, should probably limit their time outdoors; certainly any strenuous outdoor activity,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Dominic Ramunni.
The New York City health department is also urging people to take precautions as the smoke is expected to have a “significant impact” on air quality and warned it could reach dangerous levels.
And state officials announced Thursday that they are beginning to roll out phone alerts to remind residents to take precautions.
The telephone alerts are sent in areas where the air quality index has been above 200 for an hour or more.
Announcements will also be made about public transport.
An air quality alert issued by the National Weather Service, covering New York City, Long Island and the Mid-Hudson region, has now been extended through Friday night
The Manhattan skyline was barely visible from Staten Island amid the smog
The New York City Health Department is also urging people to take precautions as the smoke is expected to have a “significant impact” on air quality
As of Thursday night, projections from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration show that the worst of the bad air is still west of the city
But the situation may be even worse on the city’s many subway platforms, where experts say air quality is just as bad — if not worse — than in Canada, where there are 500 active fires and five new ones popping up today.
“If one were to use AQI for subway air quality, it would be very bad,” Dr. Terry Gordon, a professor of environmental sciences at New York University who co-authored a study on air quality on subway platforms, told WPIX Thursday. .
“Almost all underground metro stations will have worse air quality than we expect on a day like today. Would it be as bad as it was when the smoke from the wildfire came through, and might come through for the next few days? Probably about the same,” he said.
Gordon explained that the New York subway has the worst air pollution of any transit system in the world.
But when asked about the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s ventilation system, Chief Safety and Security Officer Pat Warren responded in a statement: “The MTA has been the national leader in ensuring air quality is protected on trains and buses across the transportation network. through a multi-layer filtration system that meets or exceeds the standards of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning.
“In support of the State Department of Emergency Management’s efforts to advise the public on air quality issues throughout the state, we are helping distribute N95 masks to the public,” he added.
Dr. Terry Gordon, an environmental science professor at New York University, said air quality on subway platforms could be just as bad, if not worse, than in Canada.
Commuters were again seen disguising themselves as smoke made its way into the city
According to the Forest Fire Center, there are still 500 active wildfires across Canada
Some commuters wore these masks on Thursday as nearly every province in Canada experienced wildfires.
In total, the wildfires have already burned a record 20 million hectares across Canada.
“It’s been a crazy, crazy year,” Canadian fire scientist Mike Flannigan told me NBC 4 New York. “Usually it’s regional… not all of it at once.”
He added that Canada’s wildfire season usually doesn’t start until July and the seasonal forecast for the remainder of the summer is “hot and mostly dry” conditions, which are not conducive to putting out fires.
“It’s been a crazy year and I’m not sure when it will end.”