Dystopian Haze: New York today has one of the worst air qualities in the world. What’s going on?

It's smoky outside today! Intense Canadian wildfires are covering the northern US in a dystopian haze that has turned the air acrid and prompted warnings for the population to stay inside, according to a report published by The Associated Press. 

The smoke produced by the wildfires burning across the western provinces of Quebec reached as far as New York City and New England. Following this, US authorities issued air quality alerts. 

Smoke from the wildfires was reported across the Great Lakes region from Cleveland to Buffalo. The smoky haze over New York City thickened in the late afternoon on Tuesday that has obstructed views of New Jersey across the Hudson River. 

Sal and Lilly Murphy of Brooklyn stated they could even smell the smoke indoors, in a Manhattan restaurant, then walked outside and saw a sky that looked like it was about to storm — but was rainless. 

Lilly even wore a mask for protection from hazy smoke, while Sal Murphy said, “It’s a little scary".

Since last month, Canada's wildfires have been moving into the United States and the most recent fires near Quebec have been burning for at least several days, AP reported. 

Darren Austin, a meteorologist and senior air quality specialist with the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management said, “It's not unusual for us to get fire smoke in our area. It's very typical in terms of northwest Canada. But, usually, the smoke has been aloft and hasn't affected people's health."

The wind trajectory that allowed smoke and hazy conditions to be seen in the New York City area could continue for the next few days, said Jay Engle, a National Weather Service meteorologist based in Upton, Long Island. 

Air quality alerts are triggered by a number of factors, including the detection of fine-particle pollution — known as ‘PM 2.5’ — which can irritate the lungs. Exposure to elevated fine particle pollution levels can affect the lungs and heart.

An expert suggested that it's a good time to put off that yard work and outdoor exercise. 

“If you go out, consider wearing an N95 mask to reduce your exposure to pollutants. Stay inside, keeping your doors, windows and fireplaces shut. It's recommended that you run the air conditioning on a recirculation setting. If you have filters on your home HVAC system, you should make sure they’re up to date and high quality,” he added. 

(With AP inputs)