NYC air pollution is the world’s worst as smoke from Canadian wildfires set to linger
The air in New York City was the most polluted of any major city around the world on Wednesday, as the thick smoke from wildfires burning thousands of miles away across Canada is expected to continue to choke the Northeast until the weekend.
The city was enveloped in an orange haze for a second consecutive day. All five boroughs are under an Air Quality Health Advisory, which will last until Thursday morning. This is due to the wind patterns that have brought smoke from more than 150 forest fires burning in Quebec. Of these 110 were deemed out-of-control.
Mayor Eric Adams urged New Yorkers who have heart or breathing problems to “limit outdoor activities to absolute necessities” on Tuesday.
According to the website IQair which tracks pollution levels, by Wednesday afternoon, as a dim orange haze settled across the boroughs of the city, it had surpassed pollution levels in New Delhi, India. Its air quality was deemed “hazardous.”
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The air quality index in New York reached a shocking 353 on Wednesday afternoon. This is far worse than New Delhi, which had a rating of 190 and New Delhi’s normal 100.
Forecasters reported that the air quality was at its worst since the 1980s and even after 9/11.
The Post reported that Fox Weather meteorologist Stephen McCloud said, “We will be in the same weather pattern today and tomorrow.” By Sunday night, we should see some improvement as a storm system moving from the west moves this storm system away.