Smoke pouring down from Canadian wildfires has cast a thick haze over much of the northeastern United States this week, setting off health warnings — though forecasters say conditions should improve before Sunday’s World Cup final takes place near New York City.
The championship match between defending titleholder Argentina and European champion Spain is scheduled to be played at the open-air New York-New Jersey stadium, where more than 80,000 fans are expected to pack the stands. An additional 50,000 spectators are anticipated to gather in Manhattan’s Central Park to watch the game on screens.
New York City began experiencing the effects of the wildfire smoke earlier this week, and local officials responded by urging residents to cut back on strenuous physical activity outdoors and take additional rest breaks when they do go outside.
By Thursday, air quality monitors rated conditions in New Jersey — where the stadium is located — as “unhealthy for sensitive groups.”
AccuWeather meteorologist Alex DaSilva explained the health risks in an interview with Reuters. “The areas where the smoke is the densest can actually cause respiratory problems. So those who may be a little bit more sensitive or may have respiratory issues may want to stay inside for as long as possible,” he said.
DaSilva added that significant rainfall expected Saturday should go a long way toward clearing the air. “It’s going to rain a lot on Saturday, so that should dissipate a lot of the smoke,” he said. “Sunday morning, I think we’re going to be seeing a cold front come through the area and it should kick out any remaining smoke that we’re seeing.”
New York Governor Kathy Hochul addressed the situation Thursday, warning that conditions were expected to get worse before they got better. “Smoke from the Canadian wildfires will continue to blanket New York today. Air quality is expected to worsen, with very unhealthy conditions affecting much of the state,” Hochul said. “Stay indoors if you can.”
Smoke traveling from northern Canada has become an increasingly familiar summer problem across large parts of the United States in recent years.
DaSilva advised fans planning to be outside the day before the final to limit their time outdoors as much as possible. However, he said the risk should be considerably lower by the time the match gets underway at 3:00 p.m. Eastern time (7:00 p.m. GMT) on Sunday. “We are going to be seeing some of that smoke moving out of the area as we go into the weekend,” he said.
