Wildfire smoke prompts special air quality statement for Edmonton area

Environment Canada issued a special air quality statement on Thursday morning for Edmonton, St. Albert and Sherwood Park.

"Smoke from wildfires in northern Alberta is causing poor air quality and reducing visibility in some areas," reads the statement from Environment Canada.

The statement said "people may experienceincreased coughing, throat irritation, headaches or shortness of breath. Children, seniors, and those with cardiovascular or lung disease, such as asthma, are especially at risk."

Edmonton's Air Quality Health Indexwas 7(high risk)Thursday afternoon.The index is expected to get worse, down to8 or even lowerThursday night, but rise to moderate riskon Friday.

Dr. RonDamant, a lung doctor and professor of medicine at the University of Alberta said it's ill advised for those with existing lung problems to go outside.

"There are a lotof acute kind of impacts that can happenwithin the first few minutes or couple hours of exposure and there's also the risk of ending up in emergency," Damant said.

But, he said, even for people who are otherwise healthy, going out on a day like this one is hard on the heart and lungs.

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"It can cause immediate injury to the to the upper respiratory tract, thelower respiratory tract. Alot of the particulate material and stuff gets into your body and it can cause both acutemedium-term and long-term consequences and it can beirreversible.

"Anotherway of looking at it is that all smoke is bad. Doesn'tmatter whatthe source is from and over a lifetime cumulative damage from smoke can cause irreversible problems to the lung and the heart and other parts of the body."

The Edmonton Minor Soccer Association cancelledU13-U17 Community City Wide games and U9-U19 Premier/Club games due to the poor air quality.

Environment Canada recommends that people who have trouble breathing stay inside,somewhere cool and ventilated.

Smoke is expected to move back toward the north by Friday morning.

For more information, visit Environment Canada's website.

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