The wildfires keep spreading, and the state to wake up to a bleak reality this morning is none other than Maryland. Several people noticed today that the state has entered a Code Purple on air quality, which is one of the worst to have, as it is deemed unhealthy for people. Naturally, Maryland residents have started feeling scared about, and some have begun to tell others to either stay inside their homes or prepare the good old N95 masks, as they seem to be the best protection for these dangerous times.
According to Capital Weather, Maryland has now entered a Code Purple. The aforementioned code means that the air quality of a place is at an AQI of 280, and it is now considered a health alert. The above mentioned that people could experience different systems, such as scratchy throats, burning eyes, and headaches, among others.
The only silver lining about this is that, due to winds, it seems that Maryland has been shifting between Code Red and Purple, yet both of them are in the unhealthy and very unhealthy ranges, respectively.
Since this has become extremely concerning for citizens and also a health hazard that has prevented many people from doing their daily tasks, many Redditors, especially those in the state, have started sharing some tips about what they can do to improve the air quality or at least reduce the impact of the smoke when they go out in the streets. Among these recommendations, the most common has been using the well-known N95 masks and even trying to be more careful with a home’s ACs to prevent contaminated air from flowing into a household.
Maryland Residents Worried About This Statewide Emergency
With Maryland reaching very unhealthy levels in its air quality, people have shared some of their unfortunate experiences, hoping for people to stay indoors or look for ways to protect themselves on the outside.
“If anyone has a window AC, check that it isn’t pulling in air from outside (some do and some don’t). My son’s room with an in-window unit did not smell of smoke or look unusual but the air quality was extremely unhealthy. Like alarmingly dangerous air quality, and there was no odor, so be careful.“
Others have talked about how they’ve been dealing with the air quality in their cities, and it seems the situation is worse than many thought.
“I’m in Frostburg, and the smoke is on the ground. My eyes are starting to burn and water just sitting here at my PC. Cannot see the sky either.“
“My child’s outdoor camp remains open and has no intention of closing despite conducting its entire program outdoors and having no option of going indoors.“
While this looks bleak, it seems that some states’ air quality has already started to improve, so many hope this will happen to Maryland soon.
