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UPDATED: No relief from smoke today in Red Deer area

Air quality risk remains high
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Air quality continues continued to be poor in the Red Deer area Thursday morning due B.C. forest fire smoke and was expected to get worse as the day progresses.

Environment Canada has issued a special air quality statement about the poor air quality and reduced visibility, and air quality is expected to be intermittently poor for the remainder of the week.

“It’s pretty terrible across the province. The smoke is affecting air quality all the way to Manitoba right now,” said John Paul Cragg, warning preparedness meteorologist with Environment Canada.

Red Deer and area continues to experience high risk air quality.

“In Red Deer you can expect air quality to fluctuate quite a bit over the next couple of days as the heavier smoke moves in and out of your community.”

He said blame it on the direction of the wind, but an area of low pressure will bring northerly winds later on Saturday and into Sunday to move the smoke out of the province.

“That doesn’t change the fact that the fires are still burning in B.C. and the predominate wind direction across Western Canada is from west to east. The chance of the smoke returning after the weekend is high and you can expect to see air quality continue to be affected at times across Alberta until those fires start getting put out in B.C.”

He said air quality advisories have been issued on and off for the last couple of weeks.

People may experience symptoms such as increased coughing, throat irritation, headaches or shortness of breath. Children, seniors, and those with cardiovascular or lung disease, such as asthma, are especially at risk.

Those with lung diseases, such as asthma and COPD, can be particularly sensitive to air pollution and will generally experience more serious health effects at lower levels. Pollution can aggravate their diseases, leading to increased medication use, doctor and emergency room visits, and hospital visits.

People should stay inside if they have breathing difficulties. Using an air conditioner that cools and filters air may help. Open windows may let in more polluted air.

They may also consider going to a public place like a library, shopping mall, or recreation centre that is air-conditioned if their homes are not air-conditioned.

Cragg said even the general population should reduce or reschedule strenuous outdoor activities especially if they’re experiencing symptoms such as coughing and throat irritation.

“The air quality in the Red Deer area has gotten quite bad so I would expect lots of people are experiencing symptoms from the smoke.”

Visit www.airhealth.ca for information on how to reduce your health risk and your personal contribution to pollution levels.



szielinski@reddeeradvocate.com

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