Will the Canadian wildfire smoke affect air quality in Florida?

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – As wildfires continue to blaze across Canada, the U.S. East Coast and Midwest are becoming smothered in a darkened, unhealthy haze of smoke.

On Wednesday, buildings in New York City were no longer visible as the city was infiltrated with wildfire smoke, so much so that residents said they could “taste the air.” According to the Associated Press, 400 fires are blazing in Canada, displacing 20,000 people.

NBC News reported that about 98 million people in 18 states stretching from New Hampshire to South Carolina were under air quality alerts this morning for both the wildfire smoke and the ozone.

As of 3 p.m. Wednesday, IQAIR.com, a tracking service, reported that the air quality in New York City was “the worst in the world.” While the fires rage on, more southern states are seeing the effects of the smoke, including the Carolinas, but will the hazy plumes reach Florida?

According to WFLA Chief Meteorologist Jeffrey Berardelli, it’s unlikely that much of the smoke with reach the Sunshine State. However, there is a small chance that a “thin smoky haze” could pass through parts of Florida over the weekend.

“With dozens of large fires burning in Quebec, and a storm parked off New England, unfortunately, the wind flow around the storm is carrying the thick plume of smoke directly into the Northeast,” Berardelli said. “The pattern is stalled like an atmospheric traffic jam, so the smoke will continue to pour south through Saturday, although not quite as thick as Wednesday. But the pattern will finally break, allowing the smoke to push out on Sunday.”

Berardelli added that by the time the smoke reaches the Tampa Bay area, it will be so thinned out that it won’t be very noticeable.

“Our wind flow is from the west to the east, but the smoke is far north of us, so it is unlikely much will reach us. There is some small chance that by Saturday a thin smoky haze will pass through north-central Florida, but by the time it reaches this far south, it will be so thinned out that it won’t be very noticeable,” Berardelli said.