Wildfire smoke and heat wave hammer NYC air quality

Smoke from wildfires in southwest Canada and the western United States created dangerous air quality in New York City throughout the weekend that’s expected to linger this week as a heat wave sets in, the National Weather Service said Sunday.

While the NWS couldn’t pinpoint how much smoke was coming from each regional fire, officials said wind patterns had brought a steady dose of smoky air to the city.

“The jet stream wind pattern this week transported it around from the west out to us,” said NWS meteorologist David Stark. “It’s not gonna follow a straight path. The way the jet stream and the wind flows are, there's always gonna be some undulations and changes there.”

The NWS said the smoke could clear from New York City’s skies by Sunday night. But a heat advisory issued by the agency Sunday said high levels of heat and humidity on Monday and Tuesday will keep the air quality low.

Stark also said wildfire smoke isn’t reaching the city’s surface, but there’s enough smoke in the air to observe a “haze.”

According to data from the state Department of Environmental Conservation, the air quality in south and central Brooklyn, upper Manhattan and eastern Queens was “unhealthy for sensitive groups” on Sunday, while a monitor reading in central Queens was deemed “moderate.”

State officials warned sensitive groups like children and people with pre-existing respiratory conditions should avoid the outdoors for a prolonged period of time.

Sean Morris, 43, was out for a run in Brooklyn Sunday morning and said shabby air is simply a part of life in the city.

“I saw [the air quality] on the news, but I gotta get it going. So far so good,” he said. “We’re in Bushwick. You have the concrete plant over there. It’s all industrial, there’s all sorts of stuff in the air all the time. I wouldn’t say I’m immune to it, but I’m kind of used to it at this point.”

Air quality issues caused by faraway wildfire smoke have grown more frequent in New York City in recent years, which experts say is a product of climate change. Skies in the city turned orange in June 2023 due to smoke from fires in several Canadian provinces. Meteorologists said the city’s air pollution this week won’t come close to those levels, which were so bad officials urged New Yorkers to wear respiratory masks and to shut their windows and doors.

“It looked like the gates of hell opened up two years ago,” said Joseph Curley, 35, drinking a coffee outside a cafe in Bushwick Sunday morning. ““I haven’t noticed anything [today], but last night I did. I was at a concert outside at the beach and my eyes started to hurt.”