WATCH: ‘Apocalyptic scenes’ as Canadian wildfire turns New York air yellow

New York choked in smoke as the air turned the colour of rust due to wildfires originating in Canada. The authorities issued air quality alerts down the East Coast, with people back to donning face masks, a staple during the pandemic times. People have taken to social media to share videos and visuals of the polluted New York air. 

In the videos, some of the popular landmarks and the New York skyline can be seen shrouded in a shade of yellow. People called the views ‘apocalyptic scenes’ on social media. 

While wildfires in the West Coast states such as California are usual, such scenes in the rest of the country, including the East Coast are unusual. 

The western Canadian province of British Columbia on Friday saw wildfires spreading, while hundreds of fires continued to burn on the other side of the country in Quebec, which sent the wildfire smoke billowing across the US cities.

Firefighters from countries including the US, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, arrived in Canada to help tackle the blazes. While firefighters have made progress in containing some of the massive fires in Quebec, wildfires continue to plague millions across Canada and the US. Ottawa, Toronto, New York and Washington are likely to witness poor air quality until Sunday when the wind direction shifts.

Fighting smog is an usual occurrence across Asian cities. Last year, six of the world’s 10 most polluted cities were in India. Researchers have estimated that bad air could reduce the life expectancy of millions of Indians by 9 years. Delhi’s bad air remains a focus area, especially around the winters, due to a combination of factors such as stubble burning in nearby states, vehicle emissions, coal-fired power plants etc. 

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