Wildfire smoke: Calgary air quality reaches critical level

 

 

Air pollution in the city of Calgary has reached critical level after smoke from wildfires raging in northern Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories spread to Alberta. According to the international air quality monitoring agency IQ Air, Calgary has become one of the cities with the worst air quality in North America. According to the daily report on July 24, the air quality index was recorded at 206 in the Everstone area of southwest Calgary, while the index was recorded above 190 in other major parts of the city.

In the current situation, the air quality in the city falls into the Very Unhealthy category. Based on this, the Ministry of Health and experts have issued an urgent alert to the public. Children, the elderly, pregnant women, and people with heart and lung diseases are also advised to remain indoors. In addition, people have been asked to avoid outdoor exercise altogether and to wear masks only in emergencies.

The ECCC has issued an orange alert for Calgary and surrounding areas. The agency said that smoke could significantly reduce visibility and that air quality could change rapidly by the hour. However, the weather forecast predicts that conditions will improve slightly in the coming hours and that air quality will return to normal by next week.