Huron Perth Public Health is warning of persisting poor air quality for a few days.
Environment Canada and the province both recently issued a Special Air Quality Statement for many regions throughout Ontario, including both Huron and Perth counties, due to poor air quality resulting from wildfires in Quebec and northeastern Ontario.
HPPH is stating that poor air quality may persist into the coming weekend.
Those at greatest risk of experiencing health effects are people with lung disease (such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) or heart disease, older adults, children, pregnant people, and people who work outdoors.
Current and forecasted air quality health index (AQHI) values, and related information on health risks can be found at http://www.airhealth.ca and http://www.airqualityontario.com.
Some ways that people can lower the risk of respiratory problems from poor air quality include: -Monitoring for symptoms such as coughing, throat irritation, shortness of breath, dizziness or chest pain -Staying indoors when the AQHI is 7 or greater (high risk) and reducing or stopping strenuous outdoor activities -Checking on people in your care and those around you who may be more susceptible to air pollution -Taking a break from the smoke at a location in your community where you can find clean, cool air, such as the library or community centre -Drinking plenty of water -Reducing infiltration of outdoor air pollutants into your home
Health Canada suggests: -Keeping windows and doors closed, and using air conditioning, or fans. -Properly sealing windows and doors with weather stripping. -Setting your ventilation system to recirculate when the outdoor air is poor and bring in fresh air when the outdoor air has improved. -Installing a high-quality high-efficiency particulate air filter