Lake Tahoe air quality to continue in the unhealthy range

The intensifying Detwiler Fire near Mariposa, Calif. continues to send smoke into the Lake Tahoe Basin, Alpine County, Reno, Carson City and the Carson Valley, causing air quality to be in the unhealthy range.

As of Wednesday morning the Detwiler fire had burned over 45,000 acres, sending a plume of smoke due north, into our area. It is 7 percent contained and caused the evacuation of the town of Mariposa as well as many surrounding roads and neighborhoods.

Afternoon Zephyr Winds may get some of the smoke to move out of Reno and Carson City, but Lake Tahoe won't see the same 15-25 mph gusts according to the National Weather Service.

This evening the smoke will start to settle as the winds die down and area residents can expect more of the same through Thursday.

There is an air quality advisory in place for the Sierra and Western Nevada. Smoke from the fire carries a mixture of gases, fine particles and plant materials. Those fine particles make smoke hazardous to our health.

Air Quality Index (AQI) has been between unhealthy and very unhealthy range all day, with Minden and Gardnerville seeing the worst. In the unhealthy range, everyone may begin to experience health effects and members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects. In the very hazardous range, there is a health alert and everyone may experience more serious health effects.

According to Barton Health:

Residents who see or smell smoke should consider taking these precautionary measures:

- Healthy people should delay strenuous exercise.
- Children and elderly people should consider avoiding outdoor activities, particularly prolonged outdoor exertion.
- People with health-related illnesses, particularly respiratory problems, should remain indoors.
- Keep windows and doors closed as much as possible. Use the recycle or re-circulate mode on the air conditioner in your home or car.
- Avoid the use of non-HEPA paper face mask filters which are not capable of filtering extra fine particles.
- Keep airways moist by drinking lots of water. Breathing through a warm, wet washcloth can also help relieve dryness.
- The same particles in smoke that cause problems for people may cause some problems for animals. It is recommended that you limit the outdoor physical activity of your pets and working livestock, such as horses, in smoky conditions.
- Wildlife may be confused or startled by smoky conditions. Please be cautious, as some animals may be moving about at unusual times of the day.

Exposure to smoke can cause coughing, watery and itchy eyes, difficulty breathing, and other problems. Persons experiencing questionable or severe symptoms from smoke exposure should seek professional medical advice and treatment.

Carson City Health and Human Services said when smoke levels are high enough, even healthy people may experience symptoms, such as coughing, a shortness of breath, chest pain, headaches and stinging eyes. If you have heart or lung disease, such as congestive heart failure, angina, COPD, emphysema, or asthma, you are at higher risk of having health problems than healthy people. Older adults are more likely to be affected by smoke, possibly because they are more likely to have heart or lung diseases than younger people.