While there has been bits of relief at times over the past few days, wildfire smoke continues to be a part of our daily lives in the BC Interior right now.
Of course, wildfire smoke exposure can affect both short-term and long-term health, and people can’t always stay inside to avoid the poor outdoor air quality.
As a result, the Canadian Red Cross has stepped up to offer free N95 respirator masks across many BC Interior communities.
Comments closedAs wildfires continue to impact air quality across the West Kootenay, the City of Castlegar is offering free N95 masks through several local facilities and organizations.
Short-term smoke exposure can cause headaches, irritated eyes, sore throat, coughing, wheezing and worsen existing heart and lung conditions. In the long term, smoke exposure can contribute to the development of chronic diseases, such as heart disease and dementia, according to the Province of B.C. who has declared a provincial state of emergency due to the numerous wildfires throughout the province.
The province advises the best way to reduce health risks from wildfire smoke is to reduce exposure – create a clean air space at home, avoid strenuous exercise, avoid outdoor activities and wear a well-fitted N95 mask.
Comments closedA thousand kilometres from the infernos gorging on northern Ontario’s boreal forests, Erin O’Connor watched the sky above Canada’s biggest city turn an “almost post-apocalyptic” orange as it filled with light-scattering particles of soot and ash. Stepping outside the halls of Toronto General hospital, where air filters were keeping patients safe from the worst of the fumes, she was struck by a smell so strong it felt like standing by a campfire.
“It really hit you in the face as soon as you walked outside,” said O’Connor, who runs University Health Network’s emergency department and saw a rise in patients presenting with allergies and shortness of breath. “As the days progressed, it was like that everywhere. It seemed even inside you could smell that burning.”
Far more than the flames that have engulfed southern Europe and North America in recent weeks, it is the smoke that dominates the astonishing death toll from combusting nature. Thick with toxic gases that inflame the airways and tiny particulates that breach the lungs and ride the bloodstream to hit every organ in the body, fumes from landscape fires kill 1.5 million people each year, a study in the Lancet found in 2024 – more than floods, flames, storms and heat combined.
Comments closedMontrealers must now share their picnics and walks with some new parasitic neighbours: ticks. It is a presence that even the most city-bound residents will have to get used to, as these ticks are not about to go away any time soon, according to ecologists.
“We can’t get rid of them; it’s inevitable,” Jacques Brodeur, an ecologist and researcher at the University of Montreal, states bluntly. Ticks have arrived in Montreal, and it will not be possible to dislodge them, he believes.
Gone are the days when these ticks were mainly found in the tall grass of the Montérégie region. The tiny creatures are now everywhere, from the Outaouais to the Chaudière-Appalaches region, including major urban centres. Particularly in less well-maintained parks, Mr. Brodeur points out.
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