Our air quality is awful

[sassenach]

The fire smoke is choking us out. All of us can physically feel the strain on our bodies. Last check we were at 244ppm, which is equivalent to smoking about 11 cigarettes a day. It’s even worse inland. Sacramento is in the hazardous zone. 

Mercy. 

 

[JenneinCA]

San Jose State University, Mission College and West Valley College and others have cancelled classes until at least Sunday.  It is horrible out there.  

[MEmama]

Ugh. My parents in the north bay are sending the most horrific photos.

I've been reading that schools are having to deal with kids suffering from PTSD from last years fires. It's unimaginable. :(

[gardenmom5]

the heavy duty masks HD sells.  the one with a filter.

I hear you - we had days last summer visibility was maybe a mile.  all smoke.  my son had ash on his car.

[sassenach]

1 hour ago, JenneinCA said:

San Jose State University, Mission College and West Valley College and others have cancelled classes until at least Sunday.  It is horrible out there.  

Yeah, all the schools in Marin are closed tomorrow. 

[Bambam]

When we had wildfires in Texas one summer, my dh had to wear a mask to deal with the ash in the air. Cars had ash on them. It was bad. Not as bad as the CA fires, but I can't imagine that. 

 

[Arcadia]

2 hours ago, JenneinCA said:

San Jose State University, Mission College and West Valley College and others have cancelled classes until at least Sunday.  It is horrible out there.  

 

My kids German class on Saturday in east bay is cancelled which is understandable. Their tennnis class at Cupertino was cancelled last weekend but resumed on Monday. The tennis center cancelled today’s class too so we have to check on Saturday morning if class is still on as they don’t announce in advance. 

Was at Mountain View Castro Street and Sunnyvale downtown. Haze was bad but didn’t have as bad a smell as last week. Long grocery lines in the evening.

[Liz CA]

1 hour ago, gardenmom5 said:

the heavy duty masks HD sells.  the one with a filter.

I hear you - we had days last summer visibility was maybe a mile.  all smoke.  my son had ash on his car.

 

I have one sitting on my desk. Tried it on this morning when I took the dog out. It is really tight and makes me feel I am suffocating - so it's either breathe the junk or hyperventilate. 

And yes, I believe today was the worst day so far. There is no oxygen in the air, humidity was at 7% the other day. Feels like someone is choking you without having hands around your neck.

[ktgrok]

My husband was telling me that people with Tesla cars are sitting in them in their driveway, because they ahve some weird super powerful biofilter in them. 

[Robin M]

The colleges here in Sacramento as well as Davis closed the past couple days and will be closed tomorrow as well. The school districts either closed early for Thanksgiving holiday or cancelled outdoor activities. All outdoor events have been cancelled until things clear up, hopefully next week sometime they are saying.   It's quite hazy here and we aren't getting any delta breezes so the smoke is stagnant.  I'm hibernating at home. Went out yesterday for a few minutes which made my chest hurt. Sinuses are completely messed up.  I feel sorry for the poor folks up in Paradise and Chico where its so much worse.  

[Liz CA]

38 minutes ago, kand said:

Yes. So many of the people who lost their homes are now sleeping outside in that hazardous air. I hope they can find a way to get everyone inside soon. It’s a horrible situation all around. 

 

Are they really outside? I thought that most were in shelters all the way down toward Sacramento as local shelters were filling up. Haven't seen any good updates since the day before yesterday. It's fairly cold for CA, I hope they have some kind accommodations.

[Robin M]

2 minutes ago, Liz CA said:

 

Are they really outside? I thought that most were in shelters all the way down toward Sacramento as local shelters were filling up. Haven't seen any good updates since the day before yesterday. It's fairly cold for CA, I hope they have some kind accommodations.

There's a large number of people camping out in Walmart parking lot in Chico. Services and food have been provided but it's been decided they all need to go to shelters.  Authorities  are closing down the makeshift camp on Sunday.

[Pen]

I’m sorry. It’s horrible and unhealthy. I’ve been praying for rain. 

[KrissiK]

We’re south, Fresno area, and the air quality is bad here, too. We all have post-nasal drip and the sky is really hazy and we can barely see the mountains. Definitely praying that the rain forecast for next week materializes.

[Liz CA]

I heard there may be a little rain by Thursday - Thanksgiving. 

[Arcadia]

School is still on despite the entire school district falling under the unhealthy zone. The haze in my area is similar in intensity to when Tubbs Fire (Napa/Sonoma) burned 

The Camp Fire is now the deadliest fire in state history 

From SacBee https://www.sacbee.com/news/state/california/fires/article221709760.html

“November 15, 2018 10:18 AM

Magalia

The Camp Fire that erupted a week ago in Butte County had two separate ignition points, Cal Fire said Thursday night, and the resulting conflagration has now killed at least 63 people and left 631 still missing.

Cal Fire gave no further details about the ignition points or cause of the blaze, which remains under investigation and is the deadliest and most destructive in state history.

So far, the blaze has burned 142,000 acres — about 221 square miles — and is 45 percent contained. 
 

More than 52,000 people have been evacuated and 12,256 structures destroyed, 9,700 of them homes.”

[TravelingChris]

I am so very unhappy everyone of you is experiencing all that smoke.  Hugs to all of you.  Lots of suffering from all sorts of disasters this year- hurricanes, fires, tsunamis, earthquakes, bridge collapses, and on and on.  Praying for all of you.

[sassenach]

15 hours ago, Ktgrok said:

My husband was telling me that people with Tesla cars are sitting in them in their driveway, because they ahve some weird super powerful biofilter in them. 

No shortage of Teslas around here! I would be all about that if we owned one.

[sassenach]

18 hours ago, gardenmom5 said:

the heavy duty masks HD sells.  the one with a filter.

I hear you - we had days last summer visibility was maybe a mile.  all smoke.  my son had ash on his car.

 

We still have half a box left over from last year's fires.

16 hours ago, Liz CA said:

 

I have one sitting on my desk. Tried it on this morning when I took the dog out. It is really tight and makes me feel I am suffocating - so it's either breathe the junk or hyperventilate. 

And yes, I believe today was the worst day so far. There is no oxygen in the air, humidity was at 7% the other day. Feels like someone is choking you without having hands around your neck.

 

Yeah, they're unpleasant but I still feel better with one on. My disabled son, who has lung issues and really needs it more than anyone, cannot tolerate wearing it. He starts gagging and sputtering. The only solution is to keep him home as much as possible.

[Spy Car]

Sorry to hear it. Smoke from fires is very noxious to breathe.

Less bad here, but we are still feeling unwell.

One day was horrific, but I was so grateful for that day because it meant the strong Santa Ana winds that had been blowing the smoke to sea (and driving the furiously of the fires) had ebbed. That helped firefighters who'd been going days without sleep get partial control of the fires down here.

I wish you better air soon.

Bill

 

[KrissiK]

32 minutes ago, texasmom33 said:

I was just reading this article: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-46198498  and the whole thing is truly just horrifying. I've been through hurricanes and floods, but never something that happened this fast with zero warning. It's truly a whole different animal. 

 I think as someone not from an area where wildfires are a thing, before this fire I had assumed that they started off in isolated areas and then you had plenty of warning if you needed to evacuate, so the risk was minimal to actual life and limb.  Reading about these people with no warning at all besides looking out a window,  and the roads closing in and ambulances catching on fire. It's just heart breaking. Prayers for all of you whether dealing with fire or smoke. Hope you get some relief soon. 

My brother and sister-in-law live in Magalia, which is right next to Paradise. They evacuated a week ago, the day the fire started and it is true, they had no warning. She couldn’t even go home from work. She just had to leave from there. My brother was home, so he packed up the animals and a few belongings and they met somewhere. As of yesterday their home hadn’t burned, but she said if the wind shifts it could be in trouble.

[Liz CA]

1 hour ago, sassenach said:

We still have half a box left over from last year's fires.

Yeah, they're unpleasant but I still feel better with one on. My disabled son, who has lung issues and really needs it more than anyone, cannot tolerate wearing it. He starts gagging and sputtering. The only solution is to keep him home as much as possible.

 

If you are in or around Marin / Sonoma county you got a load of the Santa Rosa fire last year. How awful.

I just read this: If the inside of your house smells bad (like smoky), boil half a lemon on low. It will NOT improve the air quality but will make everything smell better. I am trying it because I seem to smell smoke constantly even inside.

[Liz CA]

13 minutes ago, KrissiK said:

My brother and sister-in-law live in Magalia, which is right next to Paradise. They evacuated a week ago, the day the fire started and it is true, they had no warning. She couldn’t even go home from work. She just had to leave from there. My brother was home, so he packed up the animals and a few belongings and they met somewhere. As of yesterday their home hadn’t burned, but she said if the wind shifts it could be in trouble.

 

Oh God. Praying they will have a home but one cannot wonder how terrible it will be even for those who still have a home. Did you know there is an interactive map available here:

http://nifc.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=41fe4499192a4e008a1d0c69a96d6284

You can type in an address and IF it's been recorded yet (many are in the process of being documented) you may be able to see what it looks like in the area of someone's house or business.

How fortunate that your brother was home and able to pack a few things including getting the animals out. I cannot begin to imagine what it is like to be at work and be told you are now stuck in Chico and can't get back up there and everything your own is there including pets.

Edited November 16, 2018 by Liz CA

[Liz CA]

1 hour ago, texasmom33 said:

I was just reading this article: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-46198498  and the whole thing is truly just horrifying. I've been through hurricanes and floods, but never something that happened this fast with zero warning. It's truly a whole different animal. 

 I think as someone not from an area where wildfires are a thing, before this fire I had assumed that they started off in isolated areas and then you had plenty of warning if you needed to evacuate, so the risk was minimal to actual life and limb.  Reading about these people with no warning at all besides looking out a window,  and the roads closing in and ambulances catching on fire. It's just heart breaking. Prayers for all of you whether dealing with fire or smoke. Hope you get some relief soon. 

 

Some time you have plenty of warning but I lived in the foothills and this time of year - everything is brittle dry, last drop of rain back in March / April - fire spreads faster than you can blink - literally. Manzanita (dense wood) practically explodes and lights everything on fire around it. Dh, ds and I spent days every late summer / fall when we cleared old wood, cut down overgrowth and stacked it up for firewood. We were evacuated twice in the 8 years we lived there. Fortunately, we lost nothing. This is by far the worst I have ever seen as far as the foothills go. And the fire did start in an isolated area of Pulga but literally outran all the equipment Cal Fire threw at it. 

Edited November 17, 2018 by Liz CA

[Arcadia]

1 hour ago, texasmom33 said:

 I think as someone not from an area where wildfires are a thing, before this fire I had assumed that they started off in isolated areas and then you had plenty of warning if you needed to evacuate, so the risk was minimal to actual life and limb.  

 

The winds and down power lines are a big factor for speed of fire (wildfire, rural, urban) spreading. Fire tornadoes are scary.

There was an apartment building in construction across the road (to me) that went up in flames because of a welding “mishap”.  The entire fire (5 storey building) was put out in about 5hrs and there was no wind blowing during the time of the fire. Still firefighters found embers a block away from the fire. If the wind speeds were high that day, my family would have had to evacuate to the nearby neighborhood school’s outdoor basketball courts and parking lots. Neighbors directly across the building did evacuate to the nearby park’s (playground) car park as a safety precaution.

There is a green belt behind my home. If there was a fire there and wind gusts, we’ll have to evacuate to nearby open space (open air parking lots) rather than wait and see. 

ETA:

We are reminded to prepare for earthquakes (the potential big one) so best to have an evacuation bag of essentials to grab by the door.

Edited November 16, 2018 by Arcadia

[Arcadia]

17 hours ago, Ktgrok said:

My husband was telling me that people with Tesla cars are sitting in them in their driveway, because they ahve some weird super powerful biofilter in them. 

 

From Electrek  https://electrek.co/2018/06/01/elon-musk-tesla-model-s-x-3-bioweapon-defense-mode-air-filter/

“Musk credited Google co-founder Larry Page for turning him onto the idea and with the Model X in 2015, Tesla introduced a brand new HEPA air filter system.

The automaker claims that it is about 10 times larger than a normal car filter (pictured above) and it is “100 times more effective than premium automotive filters” as it removes “at least 99.97% of fine particulate matter and gaseous pollutants, as well as bacteria, viruses, pollen and mold spores.”

...

After sharing the story, Musk elaborated on other features of the air filter system and added that the option will not be available in the Model 3:

Model S & X also have an acid gas filter, an alkaline gas filter & a carbon monoxide detector that autoswitches car to recirc mode. We should prob tell people about this more. Filters are giant, so too big to fit in Model 3.

The CEO claims that the Model 3’s air filter should be “second best in the world” after the one in Model S and Model X.

The company tested the system by placing a vehicle in a large bubble with polluted air:

A Model X was placed in a large bubble contaminated with extreme levels of pollution (1,000 µg/m³ of PM2.5 vs. the EPA’s “good” air quality index limit of 12 µg/m³). We then closed the falcon doors and activated Bioweapon Defense Mode.”

[MEmama]

1 hour ago, texasmom33 said:

I was just reading this article: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-46198498  and the whole thing is truly just horrifying. I've been through hurricanes and floods, but never something that happened this fast with zero warning. It's truly a whole different animal. 

 I think as someone not from an area where wildfires are a thing, before this fire I had assumed that they started off in isolated areas and then you had plenty of warning if you needed to evacuate, so the risk was minimal to actual life and limb.  Reading about these people with no warning at all besides looking out a window,  and the roads closing in and ambulances catching on fire. It's just heart breaking. Prayers for all of you whether dealing with fire or smoke. Hope you get some relief soon. 

It did NOT used to be like this. Growing up in the hills of the north bay, fire risk was a seasonal reality. I remember watching several fires in our area--the bombers were so exciting!--but they never got very big. We were well versed in the danger and how to get out should one occur, but I don't recall a single out of control inferno like they have now. And the risk was limited to summer when the hills are brown and dry, not during what should be the rainy season.

This is an entirely different beast than 30-40 years ago. Just as anyone who grew up where I live now knows full well the thickness of the sea ice has thinned considerably in that time frame, the very tangible effects of climate change can't escape any Californian's notice. I can't see things improving. :(

[sassenach]

40 minutes ago, MEmama said:

It did NOT used to be like this. Growing up in the hills of the north bay, fire risk was a seasonal reality. I remember watching several fires in our area--the bombers were so exciting!--but they never got very big. We were well versed in the danger and how to get out should one occur, but I don't recall a single out of control inferno like they have now. And the risk was limited to summer when the hills are brown and dry, not during what should be the rainy season.

This is an entirely different beast than 30-40 years ago. Just as anyone who grew up where I live now knows full well the thickness of the sea ice has thinned considerably in that time frame, the very tangible effects of climate change can't escape any Californian's notice. I can't see things improving. ?

I’m starting to feel like we’re running out of land to burn. 

 

I will say that SoCal and NorCal are different beasts. Malibu has always burned down every 15-20 years. My childhood was full of fires and earthquakes. But I grew up with brush fires and these are forest fires- so much more severe. But what I’m hearing from people who grew up here is that it’s definitely different than it used to be.  

Next comes the mudslides. 

[Spy Car]

22 minutes ago, sassenach said:

I’m starting to feel like we’re running out of land to burn. 

 

I will say that SoCal and NorCal are different beasts. Malibu has always burned down every 15-20 years. My childhood was full of fires and earthquakes. But I grew up with brush fires and these are forest fires- so much more severe. But what I’m hearing from people who grew up here is that it’s definitely different than it used to be.  

Next comes the mudslides. 

The Malibu-Thousand Oaks-Agoura-Chatsworth areas have frequently burned, but never in my lifetime to I remember a fire that spread so far and so fast.

Nor do I recall a fire that burned 600 homes. It was pretty bad. Not like typical brush fires of yore.

Bill

[Laura in CA]

My husband has been sent home from work Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. (Why they couldn't make the decision (to be closed for the day) early in the morning, before all 6000+ employees did their commutes across the Bay Area, we don't know ...). I've had to put off projects like painting and yard work, but that's minor compared with the horrific things going on in the fire zones.

Luckily we didn't get around to buying tickets to Big Game. Of course that's (finally) been postponed ... but to a date we can't attend. Go Bears! / Beat Cal! (I have mixed loyalties.)

On a more serious note, our HEPA air purifiers just arrived today. I was wearing a mask at my job at the library today (as were most of the employees) but still got a headache and left early. We are in the purple zone in the OP's screenshot. That brown (emergency-level) blob was getting dangerously close (within a few miles) today. I think someone said Tracy was in the 400s today – yikes. I need to ask my elderly parents if they'd like us to get them an air purifier. We got two for ourselves; as my husband says, we will unfortunately need them again, more and more often, it seems.

Edited November 17, 2018 by Laura in CA

[Ausmumof3]

9 hours ago, Spy Car said:

The Malibu-Thousand Oaks-Agoura-Chatsworth areas have frequently burned, but never in my lifetime to I remember a fire that spread so far and so fast.

Nor do I recall a fire that burned 600 homes. It was pretty bad. Not like typical brush fires of yore.

Bill

Another factor that dh has mentioned from fire training over here is new home construction gives them much less time to get it out due the flammable ness and flimsiness of a lot of materials.  

[Arcadia]

On 11/17/2018 at 2:49 AM, Ausmumof3 said:

Another factor that dh has mentioned from fire training over here is new home construction gives them much less time to get it out due the flammable ness and flimsiness of a lot of materials.  

 

Here the flimsiness might be due to earthquake code as authorities are afraid heavy interior walls will kill people in earthquakes.

Air quality is better today. It has been raining this morning. Air quality index is now 59 (moderate) where I am.

[mathnerd]

2 hours ago, Arcadia said:

 

Here the flimsiness might be due to earthquake code as authorities are afraid heavy interior walls will kill people in earthquakes.

Air quality is better today. It has been raining this morning. Air quality index is now 59 (moderate) where I am.

Try to avoid going out in the rain if you can - all those toxins from the smog are going to get washed down in the rain for a few hours, at least.

[Arcadia]

It’s raining, it’s pouring 🙂

 

ETA:

Hopefully Vacaville and San Rafael will have better air quality by tomorrow 

ETA:

Looks like much better for San Rafael and better for Vacaville after the afternoon showers.

 

Edited November 22, 2018 by Arcadia

[Kathy in Richmond]

Thank you for the updates! We are driving up 101 now to spend Thanksgiving in Santa Clara, and we were a little worried about the air quality.

[Arcadia]

4 minutes ago, Kathy in Richmond said:

We are driving up 101 now to spend Thanksgiving in Santa Clara, and we were a little worried about the air quality.

 

Welcome to my city and county 🙂

If you happen to be staying until next weekend, there are many tree lighting ceremonies up and down South Bay. The Caltrain Christmas Train is next weekend (December 1st & 2nd http://www.caltrain.com/riderinfo/specialevents/holidaytrain.html)

[sassenach]

PTL!! I'm so happy. It's funny, the map shows us in the yellow, but the actual reading is in the green. Ready to enjoy a cozy Thanksgiving.

[Laura in CA]

2 hours ago, Kathy in Richmond said:

Thank you for the updates! We are driving up 101 now to spend Thanksgiving in Santa Clara, and we were a little worried about the air quality.

 

Kathy, we made sure to clean up the air before you arrived! 😊  Enjoy your Thanksgiving!!

[Kathy in Richmond]

Thanks Laura, lol!! Would have loved to have more time to get together, but we’re only here till Saturday. With dd in San Diego & ds up here, we always feel like we’re not spending enough time with either one on these trips! I really miss the days when both kids lived in the same area...

Arcadia, that’s neat that you live near ds! He’s been here near Levi stadium for a few years now.

Happy Thanksgiving!! 🦃

 

[Farrar]

The particulates moved across the country and settled over DC this week to give us crazy sunsets and lower air quality. It's amazing the power of those fires.

[sassenach]

2 hours ago, Farrar said:

The particulates moved across the country and settled over DC this week to give us crazy sunsets and lower air quality. It's amazing the power of those fires.

Wow, that’s nuts. 

[Arcadia]

2 hours ago, Farrar said:

The particulates moved across the country and settled over DC this week to give us crazy sunsets and lower air quality. It's amazing the power of those fires.

 

6 minutes ago, sassenach said:

Wow, that’s nuts. 

 

From weather.com https://weather.com/news/weather/news/2018-11-20-california-wildfire-smoke-new-york-city-hazy-sunset/

“Gary Szatkowski, former meteorologist-in-charge at the National Weather Service in Philadelphia/Mount Holly, New Jersey, tweeted a forecast map from NOAA's HRRR-Smoke model that showed the California wildfire smoke traversing more than 3,000 miles across the United States.

...

There will likely be lingering haze and smoke in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic skies through Wednesday until an arctic cold front ushers in a bitterly cold, dry air mass for Thanksgiving Day.”

 

[Laura in CA]

On 11/21/2018 at 5:56 PM, Kathy in Richmond said:

Thanks Laura, lol!! Would have loved to have more time to get together, but we’re only here till Saturday. With dd in San Diego & ds up here, we always feel like we’re not spending enough time with either one on these trips! I really miss the days when both kids lived in the same area...

Arcadia, that’s neat that you live near ds! He’s been here near Levi stadium for a few years now.

Happy Thanksgiving!! 🦃

 

 

Kathy, I totally understand! Enjoy your precious time with your kids & Happy Thanksgiving!!

[JenneinCA]

We spent  thanksgiving with my parents in Arizona.  We left on Monday afternoon.  The air was still pretty smoky.  But we came home to clean air and sunshine!  We had good timing!

[sassenach]

6 minutes ago, JenneinCA said:

We spent  thanksgiving with my parents in Arizona.  We left on Monday afternoon.  The air was still pretty smoky.  But we came home to clean air and sunshine!  We had good timing!

 

Today is positively gorgeous. This is the fall weather I've been longing for!