Poconos see hazy skies Tuesday afternoon. Here's some tips to protect your lungs
Kathryne RubrightSkies are hazy in the Poconos Tuesday afternoon, with multiple fire sources potentially to blame.
Canada is dealing with a series of intense wildfires that have spread from the western provinces to Quebec, with hundreds of forest fires burning. The smoke has traveled into the United States, resulting in a number of air quality alerts issued since May.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a poor air quality alert for New England, a day after parts of Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota received a similar advisory. Last week, U.S. officials as far south as Maryland, Baltimore, Virginia and Pennsylvania reported being impacted by the wildfires.
Closer to home, fire crews responded to a brush fire in Plymouth Township, Luzerne County, around midday Tuesday, according to WBRE/WYOU.
A day earlier, crews responded to brush fires near Route 33, closing the highway's southbound side near the Monroe/Northampton county line.
More:Brushfires along Route 33 between Snydersville and Wind Gap back up traffic
Related:Dry weather in Poconos raises fire risk, affects farmers
Eastern Pennsylvania is under a red flag warning Tuesday, meaning that “critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now, or will shortly due to a combination of strong winds, low relative humidity, and dry fuels. Any fires that develop may quickly get out of control and become difficult to contain,” according to the National Weather Service.
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection declared a Code Orange Air Quality Action Day for fine particulate matter for Tuesday for multiple parts of the state, including Berks, Lehigh and Northampton counties.
Air quality alerts are triggered by a number of factors, including the detection of fine-particle pollution — known as “PM 2.5” — which can irritate the lungs.
Who should be careful?
Exposure to elevated fine particle pollution levels can affect the lungs and heart.
The air quality alerts caution “sensitive groups," a big category that includes children, older adults, and people with lung diseases, such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Kids, who often are encouraged to go out and play, “are more susceptible to smoke for a number of reasons,” said Laura Kate Bender, the lung association's National Assistant Vice President, healthy air. “Their lungs are still developing, they breathe in more air per unit of body weight.”
What can you do for now?
It's a good time to put off that yard work and outdoor exercise. If you go out, consider wearing an N95 mask to reduce your exposure to pollutants.
Stay inside, keeping your doors, windows and fireplaces shut. It's recommended that you run the air conditioning on a recirculation setting.
“If you have filters on your home HVAC system, you should make sure they’re up to date and high quality,” Hill said. “Some people, particularly those with underlying lung disease, or heart disease, should consider investing in air purifiers for their homes.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.