CHENANGO COUNTY — As wildfires throughout North America continue to blaze, regions not burning are being affected by smoke creating harsh conditions.

“The entire state is under an advisory for unhealthy for sensitive groups, whereas Western New York, Central New York, and the Lake Ontario region are unhealthy broadly,” said NYS DEC Commissioner Amanda Lefton.

Peak conditions are expected Thursday, according to the state official.

“Throughout the day people are going to experience spikes in air quality that could be problematic,” Lefton said.

The DEC commissioner said the worst impact from wildfire smoke will be in these regions, which include Chenango County.

“Much of New York will see visible smoke throughout the entire state,” said Lefton.

However, she noted that visible smoke does not always mean poor air quality.

“It's not necessarily making its way to the ground,” Lefton said.

Lefton explained the best way to know your area’s air quality is to check airnow.gov, the only official site reporting accurate air quality data from regulated monitors.

Lefton urged residents to check the site throughout the day because smoke is expected to come in waves.

“At some parts of the day, it might be worse than other parts of the day. So in addition to checking in the morning, check throughout the day, especially before you go outside, before you do any strenuous activity,” said Lefton.

The commissioner of the NYS Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, Terence O'Leary, reminded New Yorkers of a way to get alerts when air quality reaches concerning levels.

“If you text your county name to 333111, you will receive a notification when your county crosses the threshold of over 200 off of airnow.gov, and that will be a voluntary notification that what you're seeing on the ground, the particulate matter, has raised to a level where that you should pay attention to,” he said.

At the time of writing, the air quality index, or AQI, for Norwich was in the orange range at 140, classified as unhealthy for sensitive groups. If it reaches 150 to 200, that brings it to red and indicates it is unhealthy for everyone. Reaching 201 to 300 goes into purple territory and is classified as very unhealthy for everyone.

The National Weather Service station in Binghamton currently reports that air quality will be worse today as northwest winds will continue to push thick wildfire smoke from Canada and Minnesota. It also said “AQI values above 150 are expected across the region. Pockets of 200+ readings are not out of the question this afternoon.”

NWS said the heaviest smoke is expected from late morning into the evening hours.

Dr. Jim McDonald, commissioner of the NYS Department of Health, explained that people should be concerned about PM 2.5, which stands for particulate matter less than 2.5 microns.

“Why that can affect our health is when these tiny particles get breathed in by us, if you have asthma in particular or other underlying lung or heart disease, these particles, when they get into our system, get all the way down into our lungs, all the way down into our tiny breathing tubes, and even up next to our microscopic balloons, the alveoli where we breathe in, they can cause inflammation,” said McDonald.

When the air quality is deemed unhealthy for sensitive groups, an AQI between 101 and 150, individuals with asthma and underlying health concerns are at higher risk for this inflammation, according to McDonald.

He said people with these health concerns should avoid going outside and, if they must, be careful and carry their rescue inhaler with them.

“You're going to be better off inside on days like today,” said McDonald.

McDonald gave the following tips for dealing with poor air quality: keep windows closed to not let the adverse air quality in your home; if driving, use the air conditioner setting that recirculates the air; check the air quality regularly on your smartphone if you have one; ensure the air filter on your air conditioner has been replaced; when it’s hot, drink plenty of water; and wear a mask if the air quality reaches unhealthy for everyone levels.

“So if you see on the map, it's red, then everyone's at risk. That means if you're going to go outside, we encourage you not to do strenuous activity and to be careful about being outside for a prolonged period of time,” McDonald said.

He explained that something anyone could do is wear a KN95 mask like the ones used during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“In case you're wondering what the 95 meant, it really eliminates particles, over 95% of particles that are 0.3 microns or bigger. So these are effective at really eliminating your exposure to the PM 2.5, what we're worried about right now when it comes to the Canadian wildfire smoke,” said McDonald.

Commissioner O'Leary said DHSES has been distributing these masks across the state.

For those who have to work outside, McDonald recommends wearing a mask and said the most important thing to do is listen to your body for both heat illness and air quality-related injuries.

“Know the signs of when you're getting an injury,” he said. “When you think about heat injury, that starts as cramping, profuse sweating, starting to feel lightheaded. You've got to listen to your body for that. Now, if you're having a problem with an injury from air quality, though, your body will speak to you differently. You might start feeling congested. Your eyes might start watering. You might cough. That's how your body speaks to you. If your body speaks to you, you're wise to listen to your body,” McDonald said.

Groups more sensitive to air quality include children and elderly adults.

“We need to check on our senior citizen relatives and our friends to make sure they're doing okay,” said McDonald.

He explained that if someone is experiencing an air quality injury, they may not notice right away, so an outside party might have an easier time recognizing concerning symptoms. He said if you are talking to someone who seems like they can't talk as well as usual, or are having a hard time drinking fluids, “that's a clue that they need medical attention” and “those are sometimes the signs that a senior citizen will show before they'll notice they have trouble breathing.”

“As the wildfire smoke continues to come into the state,” said DEC Commissioner Lefton, “we should expect to see continued poor air quality.”

“Please check airnow.gov, which has up to date information about the air quality in your region. And we at DEC, DOH, as well, as DHSES, will continue to update New Yorkers as we learn more about the air quality,” Lefton said. “The most important thing New Yorkers can do is stay air quality aware so that they can take the right precautions.”