Dangerous Heat, Poor Air Quality to Impact Millions
Traffic flows through Atlanta as a layer of smog hangs over the city, Friday, Aug. 18, 2000. Atlanta soared to 101 degrees on Friday, during a 5-day heat wave. Skies may be hazy like this image as hot and stagnant air build into Atlanta through this upcoming weekend. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Millions of people will endure a brutal heat wave with temperatures soaring above the century mark, and poor air quality will add to their woes.
Portions of the Plains have been gripped by 100-degree heat for days with a large area of high pressure promoting sizzling sunshine. That same high has been promoting calm conditions and stagnant air, trapping dust, ozone and smoke.
The worst air quality conditions are in place around the Houston area, where the Air Quality Index (AQI) is considered unhealthy. The National Weather Service issued an air quality alert for surrounding areas of Houston, warning: "ACTIVE CHILDREN AND ADULTS...THE ELDERLY AND PEOPLE WITH RESPIRATORY DISEASES SUCH AS ASTHMA...SHOULD AVOID PROLONGED OUTDOOR EXERTION."
Smoke from the Colorado wildfires is also contributing to unhealthy conditions for sensitive groups, including the elderly and those with respiratory problems, in Colorado Springs, Boulder and Denver.
As the high shifts east over the next several days, heat will continue to surge into the Midwest, South and mid-Atlantic. Unfortunately, air quality issues are also anticipated.
Areas south of the Ohio River are in for the worst conditions as far as heat and air quality go into the weekend.
Farther north, some scattered showers and thunderstorms that will help mix the air and diminish the air quality concerns will ignite from the Dakotas to the mid-Atlantic coast.
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