More than 800 Canadian wildfires burning as air quality alerts extend to US
Over 800 wildfires in Canada are causing hazardous air quality conditions across the northern United States. Smoke is expected to persist through the weekend, impacting regions from the Midwest to the Northeast.
Why it matters
Widespread smoke pollution poses significant public health risks and disrupts outdoor activities and major events across North America.
Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Smoke from the wildfires is causing poor air quality across New York City, with hazy skies captured on Wednesday
More than 800 wildfires are burning across Canada, with air quality alerts now extending south into multiple US states.
The air quality in large parts of the northern states of Michigan and Minnesota is deemed "hazardous" by the US Air Quality Index program, with people recommended to stay indoors.
Alerts span the Upper Midwest, the Great Lakes region and into the northeast, the US national weather service (NOAA) said in an update on Thursday.
There are currently 857 fires actively burning in Canada, including 23 new fires on Thursday, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre.
Figure caption, Watch: Orange haze from Canada wildfires seen in Ontario and northern US
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