Canadian wildfire smoke has pushed air quality into unhealthy levels across Harford County Thursday, prompting a warning for residents with breathing or heart conditions to stay indoors.
What’s happening: The Maryland Department of the Environment issued a Code Orange air quality alert for all of Harford County — covering both the northwest and southeast portions of the county — through midnight Thursday night. A Code Orange means pollution levels may become unhealthy for sensitive groups. The alert covers most of Maryland, from the Eastern Shore to the suburbs of Washington.
Who should pay attention: The alert applies specifically to children, the elderly, and anyone with asthma, heart disease, or other lung conditions. For those residents, even routine outdoor activity could make symptoms worse.
What this means for you: If you or someone in your household falls into one of those groups, health officials recommend staying indoors and avoiding strenuous outdoor activity until the alert expires at midnight.
The big picture: Canadian wildfire smoke has become a recurring summer problem for the mid-Atlantic region. Fine particles from the fires travel hundreds of miles through the air. The smoke is not always visible, but it can still affect breathing.
The path forward: The alert expires at midnight Thursday night.
Discover more from The Harford County Sun
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.