MOUNTAIN COMMUNITIES–With the extreme heat facing the Valley, the Valley Air District encourages residents to take action to keep cool, check on your family and neighbors, and monitor air quality levels. The record-breaking heat over the coming days could increase the potential for wildfires to begin, and potentially deteriorate air quality conditions throughout the Valley.
Valley and foothill residents are urged to protect their health during the coming days by staying indoors when possible, using air conditioning when possible to stay cool during the peak temperatures of the day, seeking local cooling centers, using in-home air filtration devices when needed and checking air quality before engaging in outdoor activities.
Here are four things you can do in coming days:
- Help others: Check on your neighbors, particularly those who are elderly or mobility challenged and remind them to hydrate. Safety tips can be found here.
- Set up a Clean Air Room: Use an air filtration devices to create a “clean air room”, such as a bedroom in your home, to ensure that the home has a dedicated space with safe indoor air quality especially during wildfire events. Visit the District Clean Air Rooms grant page to see if you qualify for a free air filtration device.
- Replace or clean air filters: Check any air filters in your home and replace or clean them as instructions warrant if necessary.
- Avoid Outdoor Activity: Stay indoors in cool temperatures. Air quality information is available at myRAAN.com. Extreme heat will elevate the risk of wildfires and can contribute to unhealthy air quality.
Special Health Considerations
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Poor air quality can trigger asthma attacks, aggravate chronic bronchitis, and increase the risk of heart attack and stroke. Individuals with heart or lung disease should follow their doctors’ advice for dealing with episodes of PM exposure. Those individuals with existing respiratory or other health conditions, young children, and the elderly are especially susceptible to the health effects from this form of pollution.
Residents can use the District’s Real-time Air Advisory Network (RAAN) to track air quality at Valley locations by visiting myRAAN.com or through the EPA AirNow tool. In addition, anyone can follow air quality conditions by downloading the free “Valley Air” app on their mobile device.
Wildfire Smoke and Air Quality
For details on any current and past wildfires affecting the Valley and resources to protect yourself from exposure to wildfire smoke, visit the District’s Wildfire Information page at www.valleyair.org/wildfires.
The Valley Air District covers eight counties including San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Merced, Madera, Fresno, Kings, Tulare and San Joaquin Valley air basin portions of Kern. For additional information about the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District, visit www.valleyair.org or call 559-230-6000.
