Air quality alert: take precautions

June 7, 2011—The New Mexico Department of Health has issued an air quality alert due to various wildfires blowing smoke into the region. Laboratory employees, especially those with respiratory illnesses or heart disease and the elderly, should avoid outdoor exercise and keep windows and doors closed.

Exercise with caution

To keep workers as safe as possible, Wellness Center staff are asking customers to modify their exercise program. To avoid pulling smoke inside the facility, the Wellness Center will not turn on the air conditioners and swamp coolers today, which will result in higher-than-normal temperatures inside the facility. Those who suffer from asthma, heart or lung disease, breathing problems, or are experiencing shortness of breath or wheezing, should contact their health care provider prior to engaging in physical activity. 

“It is important that in an event like the one we are seeing now, individuals modify their personal routines as necessary to reduce exposure to wildfire smoke," said Associate Director for Environment, Safety, Health & Quality Chris Cantwell. "When smoke levels are high, people should consider avoiding or delaying discretionary outdoor activities.” 

The NM Department of Health also recommends that when smoke levels are high, people should avoid burning candles, fireplaces, or gas stoves, and not use their swamp coolers.

Arizona wildfire update

According to the NM Department of Health, the Wallow Fire near Alpine, Arizona is still very active and producing an extensive plume of smoke stretching across portions of west central and north central New Mexico. Within this area, surface visibilities may drop to a mile or less at times.

The plume will continue across Sandoval, Bernalillo, and Valencia counties as well as the Sandia and Sangre de Cristo mountains region, where the plume will be less dense and visibilities will vary between two and eight miles into the afternoon.

Visibilities may again drop to between one and four miles in Albuquerque and Santa Fe toward evening and tonight. Lower visibilities are likely in northwest Catron County much of today and tonight.

The Murphy and Horseshoe 2 fires burning in southeast Arizona are producing smaller smoke plumes, which may impact southern Catron and Socorro counties today into tonight. Though visibilities are not expected to be reduced as much as areas downstream of the Wallow Fire smoke plume, a noticeable haze and some reduction in visibility is still possible.

The New Mexico Department of Health publishes some general health guidelines based on visibility when smoke from wildfires is present.

More information on the air quality alert for Albuquerque is here.