The Statue of Liberty is covered in haze, the gray sky over Times Square and the Empire State Building are hard to admire. Over the past few hours, New York has been covered in a massive veil of smoke from the ongoing fires in Canada, in parts of Quebec and Nova Scotia. Right now the Big Apple has the worst air quality on the planet: being outside for 24 hours is the equivalent of smoking six cigarettes.
The situation in Canada is also worrying. The government has requested that anyone in smoke-free areas stay indoors, including many Quebec cities where there are currently 160 fires. In Canada, there has been an increase in fires, most of which are uncontrolled. At least 26,000 people were displaced and more than three million hectares of land engulfed in smoke.
Canada suffers such fires every year, which is part of the normal natural cycle of an area bordering the Arctic Circle. This year, however, the fires came early and spread to residential areas. Causes include climate change, drought, and even rising temperatures in those regions.
Source: Today IT
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
