States issue air quality alerts due to smoke from Canadian wildfires

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Officials on Wednesday warned millions of people in the Northeast and Midwestern United States to avoid spending time outside. Smoke from more than 150 active wildfires in the eastern Canadian province of Quebec blanketed states from New Hampshire to South Carolina. School officials in New York City and Washington, D.C., canceled outdoor activities on Wednesday, and the Federal Aviation Administration temporarily delayed flights bound for some airports in the Northeast.

How bad is this year’s fire season in Canada? According to Minister of Emergency Preparedness Bill Blair, over 400 wildfires burned nationwide Wednesday, and more than 50 percent were uncontrolled. About 9.4 million acres of land have burned this year, and more than 20,000 people have been evacuated.

Dig deeper: Read Esther Eaton’s report in WORLD Magazine about how people on both sides of the climate change issue are trying to talk it out.

Lauren Canterberry

Lauren Canterberry is a reporter for WORLD. She graduated from the World Journalism Institute and the University of Georgia with a degree in journalism, both in 2017. She worked as a local reporter in Texas and now lives in Georgia with her husband.