The air quality in Berrien County continued to be listed as unhealthy on Thursday, and that was expected to continue through Friday evening. Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy meteorologist Stephanie Hengesbach tells us the smoke from wildfires in Canada is likely to linger until there’s an air mass change.
“The across the region is so dirty right now,” Hengesbach said. “It’s not just Michigan that’s seeing high pollution levels. It’s over in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, into Pennsylvania. So, it’s across multiple states. Until this whole air mass across the region changes, we may see up and down levels. Levels may improve for a period of time, but then they’re going to increase a bit again.”
Hengesbach says rain could temporarily help, but then the air quality would just drop again. Those with certain health conditions are advised to avoid being outside, while heavy exercise is not recommended outdoors until things clear up.
