(WXYZ) — A hazardous haze from Canada is blanketing parts of the U.S. and metro Detroit. The National Weather Service says the air quality alert will remain Thursday for all of southeast Michigan and into the thumb region.
In Detroit, the air quality is still hovering in the 'unhealthy' category according to AirNow.gov. The air is a concern for everyone, but especially for people who are dealing with health issues.
Michigan is 1 of 16 states impacted by the Canadian wildfires and a local father and son say they are concerned these heavy skies could impact their health.
"It's a little depressing because as much as I like being outside, right now I can't," Kenneth Raymond said.
That's because of the thick, hazy clouds of smoke blanketing the east coast and parts of the Midwest.
Kenneth says the haze is throwing a major wrench into summer plans because of his health issues. Kenneth has a neuromuscular disease that can make breathing in these conditions more difficult for him. But, right now, he's also worried about his family.
"Air quality alerts are kind of a funny thing here in my house. I have a teenage son who has severe asthma," he said.
Associate professor at the University of Michigan's School for Environmental and Sustainability, Paige Fischer, studies wildfires.
She says a couple of years ago, New York had a similar situation where their air quality index was off the charts.
"Definitely in the range of concern in terms of human health impacts," she said.
According to Fischer, the wildfires we're seeing right now in Canada, are the result of both climate change, and a history of forest management that's created more flammable vegetation. She adds that the risks aren't going anywhere.
"I suspect it's going to happen more frequently in the future just because we have all these forests that have dried out and are really prime to burn," Fischer said.
For people like Kenneth, this reality means almost a constant awareness of what's in the air.
"I have air quality app on my phone so I have dingers that go off when [there are] air quality warnings," Kenneth said.
And experts believe air quality concerns, especially for people like Kenneth… will linger for days.
