US experts respond that the United States has been hit by ten "haze", with over 400 wildfires in Canada continuing to affect air quality | Social | US
In recent days, wildfire, thick smoke, and air quality have become hot topics on American social media platforms. According to media reports such as CNN, since the beginning of this week, due to the impact of wildfires in Canada, many parts of the northeastern United States have been shrouded in haze, and the sky has presented orange and yellow tones, causing concern about air quality. On the evening of June 7th local time, New York State Governor Casey Hohel announced that the state will distribute 1 million N95 masks to the public and advise the public to cancel outdoor activities.
Spending a day in New York City is equivalent to smoking 6 cigarettes?
"20 years ago, the thick smoke generated by wildfires in Canada spread to the United States, just like this week." On June 8th, the "Politician" news website in the United States wrote at the beginning of an article titled "Canada's' worst wildfire season 'has just begun.".
Since the beginning of spring this year, wildfires have occurred in several Canadian provinces, and the smoke generated has continued to spread to surrounding areas, spreading to the East Coast and Midwest of the United States. According to NBC, as of now, there are still over 400 wildfires burning throughout Canada, of which 252 are in a "out of control" state. According to the report, these wildfires burned a total of over 3.3 million hectares of land across Canada, with an area larger than Maryland in the United States.
Due to the significant southward shift of haze caused by wildfires in many parts of Canada, the air in New York City experienced severe pollution on the 7th. Multiple photos on social media show that on that day, New York City was shrouded in orange haze, and several landmark buildings, including the Statue of Liberty, seemed like mirages shrouded in smoke.
According to a report by Newsweek, some analysts even posted on social media that New York City is currently the city with the worst air quality in the world. "If we were to be exposed to the air in New York City for 24 hours from now on, it would be equivalent to smoking 6 cigarettes."
Beauty expert: Maybe the whole summer will be accompanied by haze
In fact, in some parts of Canada and the United States, local residents are not unfamiliar with summer wildfires, but this year's fires seem to be exceptionally fierce. Several foreign media outlets have cited meteorological experts as saying that this is related to climate change.
The report points out that in recent years, some regions of Canada have experienced record breaking sustained hot and dry weather due to global warming. In 2021, the small town of Litton, British Columbia, Canada recorded a high temperature of 49.6 degrees Celsius, breaking the record for the highest temperature in Canadian history.
"Due to climate change, the current wildfire season is also longer than before, with spring coming a few weeks earlier and autumn arriving a few weeks later," said Edward Strutsk, a researcher at the Energy and Environmental Policy Research Center at Queen's University of Canada, in a media interview.
For New Yorkers who suffer from thick smoke, when the haze can dissipate may be their current top concern. In response, American television news network meteorologist Jennifer Gray said in a program, "This may be something we have to deal with intermittently for the rest of this summer."
"Canada is still in the early stages of the wildfire season and has just erupted. Although the situation may improve on some days, it may be a long-term issue," Gray continued. In her opinion, the duration of the haze is related to the wind direction.
In response to this issue, on the evening of June 7th local time, New York State Governor Casey Hohel announced that the state will distribute 1 million N95 masks to the public and advise the public to cancel outdoor activities.
In addition, horse racing and some Broadway operas have also been suspended. According to media reports such as CNN, due to reduced visibility caused by wildfire smoke, the Federal Aviation Administration of the United States delayed hundreds of flights in the New York and Philadelphia areas on June 7th local time. The Federal Aviation Administration of the United States stated in a statement that the average delay time for flights to Philadelphia is 29 minutes.
