Canada Wildfires 2025: Smoke to drift into U.S.—these states are on alert for poor air quality

Time of India

a day ago

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Big wildfires are burning across Canada right now. The U.S. this weekend might see a clog of smoke, originating from wildfires in Canada. Weather experts in many states said the air could get worse and it might be hard to see clearly. Officials in the state of Illinois have warned that smoke might impact people with medical conditions as it reaches central areas.Chicago, which recently had a bad dust storm, might also be affected by wildfire smoke and more storms. Other states expected to be affected are Wisconsin, Michigan, Kentucky, Minnesota, Wyoming, and Iowa, according to The Independent report.People in these states might see hazy skies and smell smoke, according to local weather offices. Brandon Buckingham, a meteorologist at AccuWeather, said the smoke will mostly stay high up, making the sun look dim and sunrises/sunsets more colorful.This is happening nearly two years after smoke from Canada's worst fire season ever made New York City turn an eerie orange. This year, winds are blowing the smoke southeast, bringing it into the U.S. Wildfires release pollutants, especially PM2.5, a dangerous air pollutant that can go deep into the lungs and even enter the blood, as stated in the reports.PM2.5 is a tiny dust from smoke. It can hurt your eyes and throat, make it hard to breathe, and even cause serious sickness like heart or lung problems. It also makes it harder for your body to fight off germs. Even being around smoke for a short time can worsen heart or breathing problems, especially for people with existing health issues, as per reports.Recent studies say PM2.5 exposure can cause health issues for up to 3 months after breathing it in. Dr. Yaguang Wei from Mount Sinai's Icahn School of Medicine said even small fires lasting a few days can have long-term health effects. The wildfires in 2025 have already killed two people in Canada. Thousands of people had to leave their homes because of wildfires, as per Yahoo report.Manitoba province has already declared an emergency on Thursday, with 175 active wildfires going on in Canada.12 new wildfires started just on Friday alone. Since the start of this year, over 700,000 acres of land have already burned.These fires are happening even before summer and follow the second-worst fire season of the century. The fires are worse this year because of climate change, which has caused extremely high temperatures. In Manitoba, the heat is 22 to 24.3 degrees above average, said Climate Central, a nonprofit group, as per reports.As western U.S. witnesses hot air bulbs next week, according to AccuWeather, it could mix with smoke and cause ozone problems across the north-central region. Adam Douty, another meteorologist from AccuWeather, said the Midwest will have sunny, dry days, making the smoke easier to see. Some smoke might also reach the Northeast, but because of clouds and rain there, it may not be as visible, as stated by The Independent report.Places like Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, and more might have smoky air.it can clog lungs and cause irregularities in breathing.