How the dangers of Canadian wildfires spread far beyond the flames

Cities in the northeastern U.S., as well as Ontario and Quebec, have been battling smog from Canadian wildfires that have had a myriad of effects. An expert explains the dangers.

Wildfires are strange beasts for many reasons, but one of the oddest things about them is how they can become more dangerous to you as you move farther and farther away from them, one expert says.

For the past week or so, cities in the northeastern United States as well as Ontario and Quebec have been battling smoggy conditions that have had a myriad of effects on life.

Basically, anything out of doors was put on hold in some cities as they dealt with the effects of the hundreds of wildfires burning in northern Ontario and Quebec.

While the side effects from a fire are naturally dangerous when you are in close proximity to the flames, once the smoke starts to travel, the effects can also be worse further down the line.

“Usually a lot of the worst impacts, like the very highest levels of pollution, will be directly downwind of the fire,” said University of Waterloo professor Rebecca Saari.

“However, in addition, as those particles do travel through the air, they do react with other things in the air. It’s called aging.”

She said that gases can be emitted from wildfires and then condense and transform into particles.

“That’s why this is such a regional problem and affecting things on the continental scale,” Saari said.