PRESS RELEASE

City Health Officer Anissa Davis warns Long Beach residents about potential unhealthy air quality due to Southern California’s many active fires, including Easy, Getty and Hill. The fires are being fueled by a strong Santa Ana wind condition, which is expected to continue. The Santa Ana wind condition shifts wind direction to coastal areas. Smoke and ash rising into the atmosphere may be visible over portions of Long Beach and surrounding areas, potentially creating unhealthy conditions.

All individuals are urged to exercise caution and avoid unnecessary outdoor activities in any area directly impacted by smoke and ash. This includes areas where residents can see or smell smoke.

In any area impacted by smoke, residents should take the following precautions:

• Avoid any vigorous outdoor or indoor exertion.
• Remain indoors, especially if you have respiratory or heart disease, pregnant women, older adults and children.
• Keep windows and doors closed or seek alternate shelter.
• Run your air conditioner if you have one.
• Change the standard air-conditioner filter to a medium or high efficiency filter. If you have a wall-unit or window-unit air conditioner, set it to “re-circulate.”
• Avoid the use of a swamp cooler or whole-house fan to prevent bringing additional smoke inside.
• Avoid indoor or outdoor wood-burning appliances, including fireplaces, to avoid worsening the health effects of wildfire smoke.

For more detailed information about air quality related to the wildfire, visit the South Coast Air Quality Management District’s website at www.aqmd.gov or click here for a map of local real-time air quality data. If you would like to sign up for air quality forecasts, subscribe by visiting airalerts.org.

Media inquiries can be directed to Nelson Kerr, Manager, Bureau of Environmental Health, 562.570.4170 or Nelson.kerr@longbeach.gov

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