Close X
Monday, November 11, 2024
ADVT 
National

Canadian wildfires send smoke south, triggering air quality warnings

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 28 Jun, 2023 10:04 AM
  • Canadian wildfires send smoke south, triggering air quality warnings

Canadian wildfires are continuing to send heavy clouds of smoke south, from Northern Ontario and Quebec, through both provinces and into the United States.

Environment Canada has issued special air quality statements for large areas of Ontario and Quebec warning of high levels of air pollution due to the smoke.

The agency says wildfire smoke plumes moved into the impacted areas including the Greater Toronto Area, Hamilton, Windsor, Barrie and London in Ontario and most of northern Quebec. 

It says people with lung or heart disease, older adults, children and others are at higher risk of suffering adverse health effects of forest fires smoke. 

The agency says wildfire pollution level can fluctuate over time and can vary depending on the location, but air quality is expected to improve for some areas on Thursday night.

Air quality warnings are also in effect in Chicago and Detroit and along with Toronto, they occupy three of the top four spots on Air-I-Q's global ranking for poor air quality.

As of this morning, Dubai in the United Arab Emirates tops the list of major cities with a significant score of 411 -- putting its air quality in the "Hazardous" category. Detroit ranks second, followed by Chicago, and Toronto in fourth, with an "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" rating of 159.

Still, some of the smaller communities in Southern Ontario are fairing far worse, with Sarnia scoring 372, as of 3:30 a.m., a score that places the city not far behind Dubai. Air-I-Q updates its numbers hourly.

The Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre's website shows there are 487 active fires burning across the country this morning, with 253 of them classified as out of control.

As of Tuesday afternoon, there were 66 active fires in Northern Ontario, and as of this morning, 76 fires were burning across Quebec.

 

MORE National ARTICLES

4 fined $17K for fisheries violations

4 fined $17K for fisheries violations
A Victoria provincial court judge found the violations happened off Galiano Island in May of last year when officers checked a nearly seven-metre vessel, discovering a cache of hidden rock fish -- including three Yelloweye rock fish, which are illegal to retain.  

4 fined $17K for fisheries violations

2 hurt in Prince George home invasion

2 hurt in Prince George home invasion
R-C-M-P say it happened just after eight last night in a home in the city's Quinson neighbourhood, northwest of the downtown core. Investigators haven't said how many people might have been involved in the attack or how they were called to the home.

2 hurt in Prince George home invasion

Dr.Theresa Tam says to protect health amidst wildfires

Dr.Theresa Tam says to protect health amidst wildfires
Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam says the smoke from the fires contains microscopic particles that pose significant risk to both humans and animals. The particles can cause asthma attacks, compound breathing problems for people with C-O-P-D, and potentially lead to bronchitis and pneumonia.

Dr.Theresa Tam says to protect health amidst wildfires

Canada's oil output would plummet by 2050 in a net-zero world, new modelling shows

Canada's oil output would plummet by 2050 in a net-zero world, new modelling shows
The regulator says if emissions regulations successfully limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, fossil fuel use will drop by 65 per cent from 2021 to 2050. That would prompt a collapse in global oil prices, to as low as US$35 per barrel by 2030 and US$24 per barrel by 2050.

Canada's oil output would plummet by 2050 in a net-zero world, new modelling shows

Metro Vancouver Transit Police files hacked in raid linked to Russian extortion gang

Metro Vancouver Transit Police files hacked in raid linked to Russian extortion gang
The police service says in a news release that a thorough review is underway to determine what information was contained in the 186 files that were accessed in the attack on a third-party file transfer system called MOVEit. It says the hackers did not gain access to the Transit Police network, and the software vulnerability has been patched and repaired.  

Metro Vancouver Transit Police files hacked in raid linked to Russian extortion gang

Police ask Sikh community to share information regarding Surrey gurdwara shooting

Police ask Sikh community to share information regarding Surrey gurdwara shooting
Assistant Commissioner Brian Edwards called the killing "brazen" and "appalling," saying it was "disgusting" that the incident happened at a place of worship, with many other community members present at the time of the attack.

Police ask Sikh community to share information regarding Surrey gurdwara shooting