Among the most polluted cities in the world, United States Chicago and Washington, D.C. had the worst air quality in the world, while Detroit and Minneapolis were also in the top 10, reported themessenger.com citing IQAir.
According to the report, the reason for the rise in pollution is stated to be the smoke coming out from 235 out-of-control wildfires in Canada, which is leaving a smoky haze over major cities in the US cities.
As per meteorologists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Weather Prediction Center, the weather pattern over the US could last into next week or longer.
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Meanwhile, US government air quality tracking website AirNow had issued code red alerts stretching from Richmond, Virginia, in the East to Des Moines, Iowa, in the Midwest.
News website CNN reported 120 million Americans were under air quality alerts in the US.
The Air Quality Index, when breaches 150, is considered a red alert and may affect breathing. While if it crosses 200, a purple alert is issued. Till Thursday, places across the Midwest, like Springfield, Illinois, were under a purple alert.
Even New York City was under a yellow alert on Thursday. It was seen that government officials were offering N95 masks to subway riders in the city.
According to the Canadian government, a record 30,000 square miles have burned, an area nearly as large as South Carolina. This is causing smoke in the US and degrading the air quality since mid-June.
NASA even said that the wildfire’s smoke has reached Europe.
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Updated: 29 Jun 2023, 06:24 PM IST
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