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Tuesday’s air quality for central Florida may be unhealthy for sensitive groups, EPA says
Does it seem hazy outside to you?
You're not seeing things.
Smoke from a wildfire in Quebec, Canada, south of the Hudson Bay, has made it all the way down to east central Florida, according to the National Weather Service in Melbourne.
Here's what you need to know.
Smoke from a wildfire in Canada worked its way down the U.S. coast, skirted around a high-pressure system, and curled around to blow across northeast and east-central Florida Monday evening.
Where is the smoke from Canadian wildfires going?
You can track smoke from wildfires here.
Is the haze in Florida dangerous? What is the air quality in Orlando today?
The Environmental Protection Agency's AirNow air quality forecast shows that for some areas across east central Florida today, especially the Orlando area, air quality may be dangerous for anyone sensitive to particle pollution such as people with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teens. Anyone in those groups should stay inside as much as possible today.
How long will it stay hazy in Florida?
The haze may be visible through Wednesday but the danger should be reduced by Wednesday morning, AirNow predicts, with a moderate air quality over Orlando and good everywhere else in the state.
To monitor the air quality in your specific area, you can type in your ZIP code into the AirNow.gov website.
Is inhaling wildfire smoke dangerous?
Inhaling smoke can be dangerous because it contains a mixture of hazardous gases and solid particles smaller than a human hair, called particulate matter (the EPA calls it PM 2.5) which can easily enter your lungs and bloodstream and cause damage to other organs.
Fortunately, as smoke moves downwind it generally becomes more diluted and widespread but less dangerous, according to Susan Stone, a senior environmental health scientist in EPA’s Office of Air Quality Planning & Standards.
How can I tell if smoke or poor air quality is affecting me?
Even healthy people may experience irritation of the eyes, nose and throat, coughing, chest tightness and shortness of breath, according to AirNow. The symptoms should fade once you remove yourself from the area or the air quality improves.
- People with lung diseases, including asthma and COPD: You may not be able to breathe as deeply or as strongly as usual and may experience chest discomfort, wheezing, shortness of breath, and unusual fatigue.
- People with heart or vascular disease: Chest discomfort (uncomfortable pressure, fullness, squeezing, or pain in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes or goes away and comes back), discomfort in other areas of the upper body (pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach), shortness of breath, or other signs may include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or light-headedness. Seek emergency medical treatment if you experience these symptoms. But particle exposure can cause serious problems, including worsening of your disease, in a short period of time, AirNow says. Do not assume you're safe just because you don't have symptoms.
How can I protect myself from bad air quality?
Here are some tips from AirNow.gov for people with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teens to avoid lung irritation and health complications due to increased air pollution:
- Stay indoors in an area with filtered air. Avoid strenuous outdoor activities that make you breathe faster or more deeply. Consider moving physical activities indoors or rescheduling them.
- Protect the air in your home. Keep doors and windows shut and make sure your air conditioner has a good, fresh filter. If your air conditioner has a fresh air setting, make sure the fresh-air intake is closed.
- Keep an eye on symptoms. Higher levels of smoke in some areas can make breathing more difficult. If you are experiencing symptoms, contact your healthcare provider.
- Take precautions for kids. Extra precautions should be taken for children and teens, who are more susceptible to smoke. Their lungs are still developing, and they breathe in more air (and consequently more pollution) for their size than adults.
Contributors: Ridah Syed, Laura Schulte, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
