Pictures from New York show scenes like from a science fiction film. The dense clouds of smoke over the U.S. city could increase in the future.
New York - A woman walks along the waterfront in New Jersey City. Behind her the sea - and thick smoke. Where the skyline of New York City can usually be seen, brown, dense smog covers the US city on Wednesday. Only the outlines of the buildings and skyscrapers can still be seen. The woman wears a medical mask to protect herself from the bad air.
A heavy veil of smoke from the wildfires in Canada has covered the New York City skyline. © Tariq Zehawi/North Jersey.com/IMAGO
For almost two days now, the images from New York City have been piling up, which at first sight are more reminiscent of apocalyptic scenes. The cause of the condition is forest fires in Canada. The smoke has been moving south for days and immerses the metropolis in dense smog. Already on Tuesday, the Swiss air quality technology company "IQAir" classified the air quality in New York as "unhealthy", and since Wednesday even as "extremely unhealthy". The company recommends wearing a protective mask to protect yourself from the smoke. The official U.S. database for air quality measurement "AirNow" also suggests keeping outdoor activities short and moving them indoors.
Apocalyptic scenes in New York City: clouds of smoke come from wildfires in Canada
"The smoke from the wildfires in Canada is currently affecting the air in New York City," the New York government said. Residents are asked in a health advisory to take measures to save energy and reduce air pollution. Among other things, it encourages people to use public transport instead of their own car and to refrain from private fires in the garden or other places.
The harmful smoke, which moved from more than a hundred wildfires in Quebec to the south to New York, has serious consequences, according to CNN, not only because of the destruction. New York was partly at the top of the worst air pollution in the world on Tuesday, according to the US broadcaster. Above all, man-made climate change would further exacerbate the dry conditions that favor forest fires. Scientists have only recently reported that millions of hectares of burned land in the western U.S. and Canada can be traced back to carbon pollution by the world's largest fossil fuel and cement companies.
New York City is drowning in clouds of smoke: Will the scenario become part of everyday life due to climate change?
US politician and UN Secretary-General António Guterres wrote on Twitter on Wednesday (local time): "At our UN headquarters in New York, we can feel the deteriorating air quality as the smoke from the wildfires in Canada moves south. With global temperatures rising, there is an urgent need to reduce the risk of wildfires."
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My New York City areaon Tuesday, June 6th. © IMAGO/Matt Davies
According to the Washington Post, the nationwide increase in wildfires is one of the "most predictable effects of global warming." People must now learn to deal with such situations and, as a result, to live more with masks and air filters. "This is likely to be one of many adjustments Americans will have to make as global warming continues. In a way, the haze could make everyone see more clearly what lies ahead." (nz)