Health authorities reissued air quality alerts Friday in the U.S. as Canadian and American wildfire smoke engulf parts of the Upper Midwest and other nearby states.
The Minnesota Department of Health issued an alert for 8 a.m. Friday through to 3 p.m. Saturday for the entire state, as air quality levels across the region are all unhealthy for sensitive groups. Alaska Division of Air Quality issued its first alert of the year on Thursday due to Canadian wildfires raging just shy of the border, KFSK reported.
As hundreds of fires burn over the northern border, it’s thought that smoke will also impact parts of the Dakotas, Montana, Nebraska, and Iowa, the New York Post reported. The forecast could shift depending on weather patterns across the U.S., which have been chaotic since the start of 2023.
NEXT Weather update: Friday’s air quality alert is now in effect, due to Canadian wildfire smoke https://t.co/aN3YEOt6t3
— WCCO | CBS News Minnesota (@WCCO) July 14, 2023
Some 2,000 or more firefighters have been deployed throughout Canada’s British Columbia province where more than 350 fires are currently burning, according to CBC. A young female first responder was killed while battling the inferno with her brothers. (RELATED: California Braces For ‘The Big Melt.’ It Could Be Catastrophic)
No further information was provided on her cause of death, but “hearts and thoughts” were sent to her family and community by the local firefighter union. Canada is currently dealing with one of the worst-known wildfire seasons in recorded history while the U.S. battles flash floods and tornado alerts as far north as New England.