New York, New York — On Tuesday morning, New Yorkers woke up to an unexpected blanket of smoke originating from the burning forests of Quebec, Canada. The smoke enveloped the city, dimming the sky and casting an eerie reddish hue on the sun.
Many bystanders gazed at the eerie sight as their visibility had been reduced to a mere mile. “The eeriness of it all, it really drew me in,” said Gerard Berman, peering intently, attempting to make out the Manhattan skyline through the thick haze. “It’s like Halloween in spring.”
At times, the tops of 20-story buildings were completely obscured from view, let alone the usually prominent Manhattan skyline that is typically visible all the way from Coney Island Station.
During the height of the haze, visibility was severely diminished to the point where it was challenging to discern Manhattan across the East River from Brooklyn and the outline of the Statue of Liberty from the Brooklyn Promenade.
A viral image, captured from a live news broadcast, vividly portrayed the extent of the haze. In the image, Central Park was entirely concealed from the view of Midtown Manhattan, a stark contrast to the usual visibility that extends to the park’s end and sight of the Bronx.
In the early hours of Tuesday, the National Weather Service issued an advisory encompassing the entire state of New York, warning that the air quality posed a risk to vulnerable populations such as the elderly, children, and individuals with pre-existing health conditions.
In certain instances, the warnings were elevated for specific areas of New York City, indicating that the air quality had reached unhealthy levels for the general population, rather than just being a concern for vulnerable groups.
Many individuals, regardless of region, including students from Leon M. Goldstein and Kingsborough Community College, reported experiencing symptoms commonly associated with exposure to hazardous particulates from the smoky haze, such as scratchy throats, coughs, and irritated eyes.
As Tuesday evening progressed, the scent of burning wood became increasingly noticeable, even as conditions appeared to be improving; however, the impression was deceptive due to the absence of sunlight, which masked the visible effects of the smoke.
Despite the pleasant weather conditions that would typically invite people for a leisurely walk, the Coney Island Boardwalk was noticeably empty. There were a few elderly local residents strolling the boardwalk, but a slim majority did opt in to wear a mask.
“I feel like we’re back to the pandemic way of life. First, it was one thing, and now it’s another. I’m just exhausted from having to wear a mask all the time. But I know I have to protect myself,” said Lydmila Vernikov, 79, in a conversation with the Amicus. “It is awful!” she concluded as she sauntered away. (The conversation was translated from Russian)
New York State officials cautioned that the hazardous conditions would persist until Wednesday night. While there would be some improvement in the early morning, it is expected that the conditions will deteriorate once again in the evening, reaching even worse levels than experienced on Tuesday.
Despite the health advisory, the Department of Education (DOE) seemed reluctant to take further measures, aside from canceling all outdoor activities, such as school closures. As a result, frustrated parents took to Twitter to express their grievances, expressing dissatisfaction with the lack of action from DOE officials and the mayor’s office.
“@nytimes is reporting NYC currently has the worst air quality of any major city on earth & that all vulnerable individuals (kids & teens included) should remain indoors. Why are we compelling students to attend school tomorrow when we know the commute will cause harm?” one parent Tweeted at the NYC Public Schools account.
New York City Public Schools later confirmed, in the morning hours of Wednesday, that schools would remain open.
While New Yorkers were caught off guard by the smoky air and dark skies on Tuesday, the impact of the Canadian fires had already been noticeable in other parts of the Northeast for several days.
In parts of Upstate New York, like Albany and Syracuse, the grayish haze had already shrouded the skies since early last week, intensifying as the stronger winds shifted the smoke South this week.
Edited by — Jared Scott