South Florida Has the Worst Air Quality in U.S. Amid Wildfires

Three wildfires in the Everglades saddled South Florida with the worst air quality in the nation on Wednesday morning, according to the government-operated website AirNow.

This news likely comes as no surprise to anyone who walked outside in the Miami area on Wednesday, as smoke could be seen across Broward and Miami-Dade counties; forecasters expect conditions to persist through the day before waning tomorrow.

At stations in Broward County and North Miami, the tracking site pegged the air quality index (AQI) at 133 — a level considered unhealthy for those sensitive to particle pollution.

The Air Quality Index ranges from 0-500, with higher numbers representing worse conditions. Levels above 100 are considered unsafe.
The South Florida blaze dubbed Mile Marker 39 Fire, which was first detected Tuesday and had burned about 1,600 acres by that afternoon, continued burning west of Coral Springs in northwest Broward County, according to the Florida Forest Service. As of Wednesday morning, it was 0 percent contained.

A little to the west, a second, smaller blaze that has been labeled the Sawgrass Fire, covered 250 acres and was 0 percent contained as of Wednesday morning.

A third fire, the Krome Avenue Pit fire was burning just west of Sweetwater in Miami-Dade County, covering 200 acres. As of this writing, it was listed as 90 percent contained.

AirNow determines its rankings by the presence of pollutants in the air, denoting those over 2.5 micrometers across in diameter — ash in this case. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency developed AQI as a tool to measure air quality for the public.

Large particles, such as smoke, are visible to the naked eye, but smaller particles from the same source can be more harmful, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). AirNow has detected those smaller particles, referred to as PM2.5, being expelled from the three Everglades fires.

The particles could be harmful to anyone who inhales them, but particularly babies, children, and those with lung diseases, heart disease, or diabetes, according to the CDC.

Anyone with one or more of those conditions should be aware of their area's air quality and take precautions when AQI rises to unsafe levels; precautions include staying indoors more often, avoiding strenuous outdoor activity, and avoiding busy roads and highways.