Air Quality Alert Issued For Long Island Again On Friday Due To Canadian Wildfire Smoke: NWS

LONG ISLAND, NY — An air quality alert remains in effect across Long Island Friday — and smoke conditions from the Canadian wildfires may once again blanket the area Saturday morning, according to the National Weather Service.

An air quality alert is in effect until midnight Friday, the NWS said. Air quality levels in outdoor air are predicted to be greater than an Air Quality Index value of 100 for the pollutant of fine particulates, the NWS said.

Subscribe

The Air Quality Index, or AQI, was created as an easy way to correlate levels of different pollutants to one scale. The higher the AQI value, the greater the health concern, officials said.

When pollution levels are elevated, the New York State Department of Health recommends that individuals consider limiting strenuous outdoor physical activity to reduce the risk of adverse health effects, officials said.

The pollutant of concern is fine particulate matter also known as PM2.5, the NYSDOH said.

People who may be especially sensitive to the effects of elevated levels of pollutants include the very young, and those with preexisting respiratory problems such as asthma or heart disease, officials said. Those with symptoms should consider consulting their personal physician, officials added.

According to Shannon Young, a student volunteer with the NWS office in Upton, although wildfire smoke conditions Friday across Long Island are posted as "unhealthy for sensitive groups," on the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation's Air Quality Index page, by Saturday, those numbers could increase.

"Right now, the high pressure system is pushing it off but as that moves, it gives the opportunity for the smoke to return overnight and go back up for the first half of Saturday — so it could be worse tomorrow than it is now," Young said. "Sunday should be a little better — the best day of the week so far."

Here's a look at the weekend weather forecast, according to the NWS:

Friday

Patchy smoke. Mostly sunny, with a high near 85 degrees. West wind around 8 mph.

Friday night

Patchy smoke. Partly cloudy, with a low around 70. Light southwest wind.

Saturday

Showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 5 p.m. Widespread smoke, mainly between noon and 3 p.m. High near 82. South wind 7 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80 percent. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.

Saturday night

Showers and possibly a thunderstorm before 2 a.m., then a slight chance of showers. Steady temperature around 75. Southwest wind 9 to 18 mph, with gusts as high as 29 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90 percent. New rainfall amounts between three quarters and one inch possible.

Sunday

Partly sunny, then gradually becoming sunny, with a high near 83. Northwest wind 11 to 13 mph.

Sunday night

Mostly clear, with a low around 67.

Monday

Sunny, with a high near 82.

Monday night

Partly cloudy, with a low around 68.