‘Like walking through campfire smoke’
‘Like walking through campfire smoke’
Residents on B.C. air quality:
By Irish Mae Silvestre
The Philippine Reporter
On top of a steadily rising number of COVID-19 cases, British Columbia also had to deal with the effects of wildfires south of the border. Smoke blanketed parts of B.C., with poor air quality forcing residents indoors. The effect was widespread with smoke traveling east all the way to Ontario. Poor visibility grounded flights in parts of Washington state, Oregon and California. But while wildfires aren’t necessarily new for B.C. residents, some say that this has been the worst they’ve experienced.
Caught Outdoors
On Friday, September 11, Lucia Lam had set off for a weekend outside downtown Vancouver along with her partner and some friends. They planned to spend the weekend camping and hiking at Golden Ears Provincial Park.
“I was driving out that Friday to go camping,” she recalled during an online chat. “That’s when I noticed that it was starting to get smoky. [But] I really noticed it when we went hiking on Saturday.”
Lam said that on an ordinary day, hiking along the lake often offered views of the other side [of the lake] but this time, it was like staring out at an ocean.
“A friend of mine who used to have asthma as a kid was having a hard time,” she said. “[You can] definitely both smell and see it – it was like hiking in a fog except it smells like smoke. Breathing was harder like walking through a campfire smoke.”
Since the group had no cell phone signal over the weekend, they only became aware of the severity of the situation as they left the park.
“We immediately noticed the smoke even more outside the park,” said Lam. “I started getting a headache and nausea. [There was a] lot of news stories about air quality advisories and we were told to stay indoors, close our windows and also avoid outdoor activities.”
Stuck Indoors
Surrey resident Michael Tanquiza said on the first day the smoke smelled like burnt chemicals.
“The outside was muggy like a haze and you couldn’t see the sun,” said Tanquiza, who works in the restaurant industry. “I heard the news about the fires in the U.S. but I didn’t expect it would reach here – it’s way too far.”
He said that the government warned people on the news.
“They always warn people not to go outside,” he said. “And if they have to go outside [they should] wear N95 masks to avoid the bad quality of the air.”
Unfortunately, he said it’s his second time experiencing the effects of wildfires.
“For those who have asthma or health problems it’s really bad especially for older people,” said Tanquiza. As for its effect on his daily activities, he said that, like everyone, he was forced to stay home.
“I can’t do activities outside, that’s the main problem for me,” he said. “I want to work out but I can’t go out because the air was polluted. All you can do is to just stay home.”
Family Concerns
Art teacher Abby Benneth Liwag lives near Burnaby and shares a house with her husband, two sons and her parents. She said she first noticed a burning smell during their walks outside.
“My husband would also cough when he had the windows open while he was working,” she said.
They had to cancel hiking plans but she said her main worry was her parents. “They didn’t want to go outside since they were scared that the smoke would have an impact on their breathing,” she said.
However, residents say that several days of rain have helped to clear the air but there’s still a very real concern that this can happen again.
“[It’s been] much worse this time around,” said Lam. “I don’t think it’s ever persisted for so many days – usually it [lasts] just a day or two.”
Tanquiza believes the issue is more than just global warming.
“Some people don’t have discipline,” he said. “They smoke and throw [the cigarette away] and they don’t care and that causes fires, especially during drier seasons.”
While it has been an inconvenience, Lam said she’s still grateful. “I count myself lucky that it was just smoke for us,” she said. “I feel for folks whose homes are physically impacted by the fires.”
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