Brīdinājumi, Cass County Sheriff's Office

Air Quality Alert issued July 15 at 10:02AM EDT by NWS Northern Indiana The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) has declared an Air Quality Alert for today, July 15th and tomorrow, Thursday, July 16th, for elevated levels of fine particulate (PM2.5) from wildfire smoke in parts of southern Lower Michigan. Pollutants within those areas are expected to be in the Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (USG, Orange AQI) range. The Air Quality Alert is in effect for the following counties in southwest Michigan... Berrien, Cass, St Joseph, Branch, and Hillsdale Plumes of smoke from Canadian wildfires will continue moving into the region this week. The plumes Wednesday morning have reached the upper peninsula, and the plumes will continue sinking south, reaching the Michigan/Indiana border Wednesday evening. It is recommended that, when possible, you avoid strenuous outdoor activities, especially those with heart disease and respiratory diseases like asthma. Monitor for symptoms such as wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, dizziness, or burning in nose, throat, and eyes. Reduce or eliminate activities that contribute to air pollution, such as: * outdoor burning, * use of residential wood burning devices. Tips for households: Keep windows closed overnight to prevent smoke from getting indoors and, if possible, run central air conditioning with MERV-13 or higher rated filters. For up-to-date air quality data for Michigan visit the MiAir site: Michigan.gov/MiAir For up-to-date air quality data nationally visit EPA's Air Now site: AirNow.gov For further health information, please see MDHHS's Wildfire Smoke and You Health site: https://www.michigan.gov/mdhhs/safety-injury-prev/environmental- health/your-health-and-wildfire-smoke