Smoky skies persist in Northeast but unhealthy air quality relief nears
Poor air quality conditions will continue to move eastward into the weekend, which means that the smoke will continue to thin out for many Americans as the holiday weekend begins.
Over 100 million Americans dealing with smoky skies Friday night
Many Americans are currently smothered by thick wildfire smoke, but relief may be in sight for some as the big 4th of July weekend gets under way. June 30, 2023.
NEW YORK CITY – More than 100 million Americans were smothered by thick wildfire smoke Friday, but relief may be in sight for some as the big Fourth of July weekend gets underway.
There was mild improvement along the Northeast's I-95 corridor Saturday morning, with Air Quality Index (AQI) levels dropping below 150 around New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, DC area. However, "unhealthy" readings over 150 persisted in much of Upstate New York into western Connecticut and Massachusetts, and even into northern Vermont.
(FOX Weather)
Poor air quality conditions will continue to move east out to sea into the weekend, which means that the smoke will continue to thin out for many Americans as the holiday weekend begins.
![Smoke From Canadian Wildfires Creates Hazy Conditions Over New York City NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 30: Smoke from wildfires in Canada shrouds the Statue of Liberty on June 30, 2023 in New York City. The eastern U.S. is once again experiencing air quality concerns as smoke from Canadian wildfires billows south with New York City's air quality index reaching 162 in many places. (Photo by David Dee Delgado/Getty Images)]()
Image 1 of 25Smoke from wildfires in Canada shrouds the Statue of Liberty on June 30, 2023 in New York City. (David Dee Delgado)
![Smokey Sunrise in New York City]()
Image 2 of 25The sun rises out of a cloud as smoke shrouds the skyline of lower Manhattan and One World Trade Center in New York City on June 30, 2023, as seen from Jersey City, New Jersey. (Gary Hershorn)
![Smokey Sunrise in New York City]()
Image 3 of 25The sun rises out of a cloud as smoke shrouds the skyline of lower Manhattan and One World Trade Center in New York City on June 30, 2023, as seen from Jersey City, New Jersey. (Gary Hershorn)
![Smokey Sunrise in New York City]()
Image 4 of 25Smoke shrouds the skyline of lower Manhattan and One World Trade Center as the sun rises in New York City on June 30, 2023, as seen from Jersey City, New Jersey. (Gary Hershorn)
![The smoke-covered skyline in Atlanta on Friday, June 30, 2023.]()
Image 5 of 25The smoke-covered skyline in Atlanta on Friday, June 30, 2023. (Billy Heath)
![The smoke-covered skyline in Atlanta on Friday, June 30, 2023.]()
Image 6 of 25The smoke-covered skyline in Atlanta on Friday, June 30, 2023. (Billy Heath)
![Smokey Sunrise in New York City]()
Image 7 of 25Smoke from the Canadian forrest fires clouds the sky over JFK International airport on June 30, 2023 in New York City. (David Dee Delgado)
![The smoke-covered skyline in Atlanta on Friday, June 30, 2023.]()
Image 8 of 25The smoke-covered skyline in Atlanta on Friday, June 30, 2023. (Billy Heath)
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Image 9 of 25( )
![Wildfire smoke in Albany, New York. (Image: @NYCRobyn/Twitter)]()
Image 10 of 25Wildfire smoke in Albany, New York. (@NYCRobyn/Twitter)
![The sunrise tinted with wildfire smoke in Albany, New York.]()
Image 11 of 25The sunrise tinted with wildfire smoke in Albany, New York. (@NYCRobyn/Twitter)
![The smokey Cleveland skyline on Friday, June 30, 2023. (Image: NWS Cleveland)]()
Image 12 of 25The smokey Cleveland skyline on Friday, June 30, 2023. (NWS Cleveland)
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Image 13 of 25Smoke from wildfires in Canada shrouds the sun as it sets above 42nd Street on June 29, 2023, in New York City. (Gary Hershorn)
![Wildfire smoke over New York City]()
Image 14 of 25Smoke from wildfires in Canada shrouds buildings beyond midtown Manhattan in Queens in a view seen from the 86th floor of the Empire State Building on June 29, 2023, in New York City. (Gary Hershorn)
![Wildfire smoke over New York City]()
Image 15 of 25Smoke from wildfires in Canada shrouds Hudson Yards and buildings on the westside of midtown Manhattan in a view seen from the 86th floor of the Empire State Building on June 29, 2023, in New York City. (Gary Hershorn)
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Image 16 of 25Air quality is at unhealthy levels due to smoke from Canadian wildfires in New York, United States on June 29, 2023. Officials stated that the air quality may worsen in the upcoming days. (Fatih Aktas / Anadolu Agency)
![Wildfire smoke over New York City]()
Image 17 of 25Air quality is at unhealthy levels due to smoke from Canadian wildfires in New York, United States on June 29, 2023. Officials stated that the air quality may worsen in the upcoming days. (Fatih Aktas / Anadolu Agency)
![Wildfire smoke over New York City]()
Image 18 of 25Air quality is at unhealthy levels due to smoke from Canadian wildfires in New York, United States on June 29, 2023. Officials stated that the air quality may worsen in the upcoming days. (Fatih Aktas / Anadolu Agency)
![Wildfire smoke over New York City]()
Image 19 of 25Air quality is at unhealthy levels due to smoke from Canadian wildfires in New York, United States on June 29, 2023. Officials stated that the air quality may worsen in the upcoming days. (Fatih Aktas / Anadolu Agency)
![Smoke from the Canadian wildfires has descended on the region, on June 29 in Washington, DC.]()
Image 20 of 25A woman crosses 13th street in NW as smoke from the Canadian wildfires renders the cityscape amorphous in Washington, DC. (Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post)
![Smoke from the Canadian wildfires has descended on the region, on June 29 in Washington, DC.]()
Image 21 of 25The Capitol dome is a hazy shape as seen from Maryland avenue in SW as smoke from the Canadian wildfires descends on the region in Washington, DC. (Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post)
![NEW YORK, UNITED STATES - JUNE 29: People carry on with their daily lives as the air quality is at unhealthy levels due to smoke from Canadian wildfires in New York, United States on June 29, 2023. Officials stated that the air quality may worsen in the upcoming days. (Photo by Fatih Aktas/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)]()
Image 22 of 25A man and woman stand in the foreground, as a hazy, wildfire smoke-covered New York city sits in the background. June 29, 2023. (Fatih Aktas / Anadolu Agency)
![Wildfire smoke turns the sky orange above Hubertus, Wisconsin, on Wednesday, June 29, 2023.]()
Image 23 of 25Wildfire smoke turns the sky orange above Hubertus, Wisconsin, on Wednesday, June 29, 2023. (Eileen Worman via Storyful)
![CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JUNE 28: Wildfire smoke clouds the skyline on June 28, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. The Chicago area is under an air quality alert as smoke from Canadian wildfires has covered the city for a second straight day.]()
Image 24 of 25CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JUNE 28: Wildfire smoke clouds the skyline on June 28, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. The Chicago area is under an air quality alert as smoke from Canadian wildfires has covered the city for a second straight day. (Scott Olson)
![CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JUNE 28: Wildfire smoke clouds the skyline on June 28, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. The Chicago area is under an air quality alert as smoke from Canadian wildfires has covered the city for a second straight day.]()
Image 25 of 25CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JUNE 28: Wildfire smoke clouds the skyline on June 28, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. The Chicago area is under an air quality alert as smoke from Canadian wildfires has covered the city for a second straight day. (Scott Olson)
AIR QUALITY TRACKER: HOW BAD IS THE SMOKY AIR IN YOUR AREA?
In the Northeast, air quality alerts remain for Michigan and eastern New York as well as Vermont, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts.
(FOX Weather)
Until air quality alerts are lifted, health experts warned individuals in unhealthy air quality levels to limit their outdoor activity to reduce the effects of the toxic air.
WHAT TO DO WHEN WILDFIRE SMOKE SMOTHERS YOUR AREA, AND HOW TO KEEP YOUR HOME'S AIR CLEAN
Sensitive health groups may experience respiratory problems and difficulty breathing.
Relief in sight?
While the smoke will thin out going into the Fourth of July weekend, air quality concerns will persist, according to the FOX Forecast Center.
"As we get into your Saturday morning, you can start to see the smoke disperse even more with maybe a slight haze in the sky," said FOX Weather meteorologist Kelly Costa.
The map below is tracking the wildfire smoke. By Saturday night, much of the Great Lakes will experience much clearer, more smoke-free skies, while smokier skies will be along the Atlantic coastline.
(FOX Weather)
How the smoke moved across the country
Air quality was significantly improved Thursday night and Friday across much of Illinois south of Chicago, Indiana, western Ohio and Kentucky after Thursday’s ferocious winds associated with a derecho cleaned out the atmosphere.
The winds from the derecho didn't reach Cleveland, which woke to smoky skies Friday, where air quality alerts remained in place across northeast Ohio. The unhealthy air caused health advisories to be issued for many communities, and more than 120 million Americans were put under Air Quality Alerts on Thursday.
Air quality alerts were in effect as far south as Atlanta by Friday afternoon as a plume of wildfire smoke spread south along the Appalachians. Air quality there reached "Unhealthy" levels on the Air Quality Index with readings above 150.
The smoke-covered skyline in Atlanta on Friday, June 30, 2023. (Image credit: Billy Heath)
(FOX Weather)
Farther north, air quality alerts still covered several states Friday afternoon across the Northeast, mid-Atlantic and Great Lakes, including all of New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Michigan, West Virginia and New Jersey.
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection declared an Air Quality Action Day for Friday because of the wildfire smoke and ozone pollution.