Wildfire smoke from N.S. prompts special air quality advisories around N.B.

Smoke from wildfires in the region has prompted air quality statements in New Brunswick.

Wildfire smoke from the out of control wildfire in West Dalhousie, N.S., has prompted a number of special air quality advisories and statements in New Brunswick.

Residents in the town of Riverview, N.B., began their day with a thick haze of smoke blanketing the community. The municipality made a post to social media giving residents a heads up the air quality would be poor at times throughout the day. By early afternoon the smoke had lifted over the city.

“It was pretty bad here this morning,” Dave and Cameron D’Amours told CTV while out for an afternoon walk.

“You see a cloud of smoke and it looked like fog, but it was just staying there. You could smell a campfire first thing this morning.”

Brant Clifford was in town from Nova Scotia visiting family. Having dealt with plenty of wildfire smoke in recent years, he says the conditions this morning were among the worst he has seen.

“It was thick,” he says, noting it was very bad up until past 9 a.m. “You could feel that almost burning in your lungs and even in your eyes.”

The smoky conditions prompted Canada Post to issue a ‘red delivery service alert’ for Moncton. As a result, there were no deliveries or mail collection for the day.

Riverview Fire and Rescue Chief Robin True says it was tough to breathe and see coming into the station Monday morning.

He also noted there was an uptick in calls from concerned residents over fears an outdoor fire may have started nearby.

“We certainly do get a lot of inquiries,” says Chief True. “Some come in the form of 9-1-1 calls, other calls just come into the station or people come into the station to report smoke near their home.”

He says the department tries to get the word out to the community as quicky as possible that the smoke is a result of out-of-province fires. That said, he appreciates the awareness by residents during the dry conditions.

The chief also notes when the smoke is present it can cause breathing difficulties. It can be especially troubling for those with underlying respiratory conditions, seniors, children, or people who must work outside in the conditions, among others.

Melanie Langille is the president and CEO of NB Lung, an association devoted to New Brunswickers lung health priorities.

She says wildfire smoke is a form of air pollution, and there is no safe level. She recommends if the air quality is bad in your area to try and stay indoors as much as possible with the doors and windows closed.

“If you have a circulation system on your ventilation system at home, you want to turn off that outdoor air intake because the air outside is not clean today,” Langille says. “Keep that smoky air out. If you don’t have that, just keeping the doors and windows closed is certainly pretty well effective.”

For people who cannot get the smoke out of their home, she says taking a break in places like malls or libraries is a good idea as they tend to have great air and ventilation systems.

Knowing not everyone can escape the smoke, Langille says there are some extra precautions you can take.

“If you have asthma and you’re taking medications for that, you may need to reach for that medication more often so I would recommend that you speak to your doctor about that,” says Langille. “Drinking lots of water can help your body mitigate the impacts of the smoke but just really, it’s just listening to your body.”

Both Langille and Chief True also say using an N95 mask while outdoors is a good tool to help filter out the smoke.

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