CANADIAN WILDFIRES LIVE: New Jersey hospitals see 'significant increase' in asthma patients

Wildfires like the current blazes in Canada are preventable but will continue to happen for as long as governments neglect our forests, former Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke tells DailyMail.com. 

The fires ravaging Canada have been burning for six weeks but have fallen under much harsher scrutiny this week thanks to the choking cloud of smoke they sent south over the border. 

Democrats like Bernie Sanders and Elizbeth Warren are echoing Canadian PM Justin Trudeau's claim that climate change and climate change alone is to blame, while Republicans say proper forest management would have drastically reduced the problem. 

Three stars of the Broadway show Shucked bailed on the performance on Wednesday night amid wildfire smog chaos - forcing a writer and composer to step in to save the day. 

The new musical, which is nominated for nine Tony Awards including Best Musical, saw both play the female lead Maizy after the regular actor and her two understudies called out. 

Robert Horn, who wrote the book that the musical is based on, read the main female character's dialogue. And Brandy Clark, the musical's composer, came on to sing the character's songs. 

More than 3,000 flights have been delayed within, entering or leaving the US, according to data from FlightAware.

At New York's LaGuardia airport, a quarter of flights were delayed Thursday night leaving the airport while nearly 50 percent were delayed entering the hub.

Eleven percent of flights coming into John F Kennedy International Airport were also delayed, as were 18 percent entering Newark Liberty International Airport.

In DC, 16 percent of flights leaving Ronald Reagan National Airport were delayed as were 11 percent of flights coming into the airport.

American Airlines has announced that it will allow travelers to rebook their flights scheduled for June 8 or June 9 for free when traveling through 25 airports affected by the smoke.

They include:

Akron / Canton, Ohio (CAK)

 · Albany, New York (ALB)

 · Allentown, Pennsylvania (ABE)

 · Baltimore, Maryland (BWI)

 · Boston, Massachusetts (BOS)

 · Buffalo, New York (BUF)

 · Charlottesville, Virginia (CHO)

 · Cleveland, Ohio (CLE)

 · Columbus, Ohio (CMH)

 · Hampton / Newport News, Virginia (PHF)

 · Manchester, New Hampshire (MHT)

 · New York Kennedy, New York (JFK)

 · New York LaGuardia, New York (LGA)

 · Newark, New Jersey (EWR)

 · Norfolk, Virginia (ORF)

 · Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (PHL)

 · Providence, Rhode Island (PVD)

 · Richmond, Virginia (RIC)

 · Rochester, New York (ROC)

 · Salisbury / Ocean City, Maryland (SBY)

 · Syracuse, New York (SYR)

 · Washington Dulles, Washington D.C. (IAD)

 · Washington Reagan, Washington D.C. (DCA)

 · White Plains / Westchester County, New York (HPN)

 · Wilkes-Barre / Scranton, Pennsylvania (AVP)

In a statement on Thursday, President Joe Biden said he directed the National Interagency Fire Center to respond to the wildfires in Canada.

The agency will provide additional firefighters and fire suppression assets like air tankers.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said on Thursday the state saw a 'significant increase' in asthma cases.

'There is significant increase in folks with asthma-related incidents,' he said at a news conference.

On Wednesday, State Health Department officials said, there were 143 people seeking case for asthma-related issues, the highest since a wave of pollen swept across the state earlier in the year.

Health experts are warning millions of people to remain indoors and avoid exposure to the hazardous smog engulfing the East Coast. 

New York City has become one of the worst polluted cities in the world due to the smoke, which is the result of over 400 untamed wildfires burning over the Canadian border. 

The fog is made up with dangerous nanoparticles small enough to penetrate into the bloodstream, and people have reported side effects including irritation to the eyes and throat and breathing problems. 

Wednesday marked the worst wildfire pollution event in recent US history, experts confirmed, as more than 75 million Americans are still under air quality warnings.  

The microscopic soot and ash traveling in the misty haze turned the atmosphere yellow and orange in New York City - and disrupted flights, schools, and sports games across a handful of other cities and states.

Stanford University professors have now confirmed that yesterday, June 7, was indeed the worst toxic wildfire smoke exposure experienced in the US since 2006. 

Philadelphia trash collectors were pulled from their routes Thursday morning due to the poor air quality in the city, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

City Councilman Jamie Gauthier tweeted about the news, saying: 'If the air quality improves later today, trash may be collected.'

He applauded the decision saying: 'Safety is always the concern. This is something that's unknown... so it's better to stay on the safe side.'

New York City public schools will hold remote classes on Friday due to the poor air quality, the Education Department announced.

Classes were already canceled for most children in elementary and public schools, but high school students had been scheduled to attend school in-person.

The White House on Thursday postposed an outdoor Pride event due to hazardous air pollution in the nation's capital.

'Today's Pride event on the White House South Lawn will be postponed until Saturday based on the projected air quality in the region,' the White House said in a statement.

Millions in America's East Coast metros have been buckled by out-of-control Canadian wildfires, with the destructive smoke lingering over major US cities for a second consecutive day. 

Residents in key metros including New York, Washington DC and Philadelphia woke up to find their iconic skylines again shrouded in an ominous yellow mist, leaving many to wonder how long the smog is set to remain. 

Through Thursday, flights were periodically delayed out of LaGuardia, Philadelphia and Newark Airports as the FAA scrambles to deal with the ongoing travel chaos. 

The hazardous smog sweeping down from the Canadian wildfires has continued to wreak havoc on Thursday for millions of people on the East Coast.  

Schools, theatres, libraries, flights and sports games have been closed or canceled amid the high-alert air quality issues. 

New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey and Virginia are being choked by bad air quality which ranks worse than the most polluted cities in the world such as Lahore, Pakistan and Delhi, India. 

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is shrugging off the blame for the ferocious wildfires wreaking havoc on the northeast, attributing them entirely to climate change and ignoring any suggestion that poor forest management may have played a role.

Biden yesterday sent 600 American firefighters to Canada to help battle the fires that have been raging for six weeks north of the border. 

Those fires came into sharp focus yesterday when a choking blanket of smoke blew south, giving New York City the unhealthiest air of anywhere on earth and sparking chaos in many other states. 

At a news conference on Thursday, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul warned that the smoky conditions are not over.

'This is not over,' she said, though she claimed New Yorkers may 'get a little respite' throughout the day.

'This is the new reality we're dealing with,' she said.

Health officials in 16 states and Washington DC have issued or extended air quality alerts on Thursday, warning that the smoke could exceed unhealthy levels and make breathing difficult.

Those states include:

 Pennsylvania
• Michigan
• New York
• Ohio
• Vermont
• Massachusetts
• Connecticut
• Rhode Island
• New Jersey
• Delaware
• Indiana
• Maryland
• Washington, D.C.
• Kentucky
• Virginia
• North Carolina
• South Carolina

Pennsylvania is now experiencing the worst air quality in the United States, with the Susquehanna Valley reporting an AQI of 353 which is considered 'very unhealthy.'

The air quality in the area is equivalent to smoking 20 cigarettes in a single day.

Meanwhile, the DC area was experiencing an AQI of 273, and Brooklyn,  New York was reporting an AQI of 209. The normal for New York, Gov. Kathy Hochul said, is between 35 to 50.

The Belmont Stakes, the third leg of the Triple Crown, may still be canceled.

On Thursday, Gov. Hochul announced that Belmont Park has 'instituted enhanced measures' to protect the horses.

But, she said, if the Air Quality Index is above 200 the Stakes will be canceled.

The Washington Nationals game against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the nation's capital has been delayed.

The game will e made up on June 22, and all parking passes and tickets for today's game will be honored.

An Ed Sheeran concert scheduled for June 10 and 11 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey is still on, the concert venue announced on social media.

'We continue to monitor the situation, and will provide updates as needed,' it said.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced on Thursday that air quality will gradually improve throughout the day with the possibility of a 'significant improvement' by Friday.

'The large plume we saw yesterday has been pushed through the city, and we are expecting gradual improvement through the early afternoon today,' he said at a news conference.

'But a sea breeze this afternoon could push smoke back over the city.

'It would be great to see the sun again, but the wind is going to determine that,' he added.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has temporarily halted flights from the northeast, Ohio and Mid-Atlantic bound for New York's LaGuardia Airport, saying wildfire smoke from Canada was reducing visibility and impacting U.S. flights.

The agency said it would likely need to take further steps to address traffic into New York City, Washington, Philadelphia and Charlotte, North Carolina.

Comer's performance was not the only one interrupted by the smog. 'Hamilton' and 'Camelot' canceled Wednesday performances on Broadway.

And it was not to be at Central Park's outdoor stage, either. Shakespeare in the Park canceled its Thursday and Friday performances of 'Hamlet,' saying 'tis not nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of wretched air.

Major League Baseball's Yankees and Phillies had their games postponed.

A National Women's Soccer League match in Harrison, New Jersey, was also rescheduled, as was a WNBA women's basketball game in Brooklyn.

British actress Jodie Comer had to be helped off stage minutes into a Broadway show.

The matinee performance of 'Prima Facie' was halted after 10 minutes, and was restarted with understudy Dani Arlington going on for Comer in the role of Tessa.

Audience members said the one-woman play about a defence barrister started ten minutes late. Three minutes in, Comer, 30, is understood to have coughed, paused, and then told the stage manager: 'I can't breathe in this air.'

She was then helped off stage.

You can read our full report here

New York City air is 'hazardous', according to the US government online platform AirNow, which has warned that everyone should stay indoors and reduce activity levels.

Air quality warnings are in effect for more than 100 million people in the US.

Thick smoke from Canadian wildfires to the north descended on New York this week, leaving a fiery smell and visible smog across the city.

An online calculator suggested breathing in the air in New York City for 24 hours is equivalent to smoking 22 cigarettes.

Read here to find tips on how to protect yourself and your pets against wildfire smog that is sweeping the Northeast:

With weather systems expected to hardly budge, the smoky blanket billowing from wildfires in Quebec and Nova Scotia and sending plumes of fine particulate matter as far away as North Carolina should persist into Thursday and possibly the weekend.

That means at least another day, or more, of a dystopian-style detour that's chased players from ballfields, actors from Broadway stages, delayed thousands of flights and sparked a resurgence in mask wearing and remote work - all while raising concerns about the health effects of prolonged exposure to such bad air.

The weather system that's driving the great Canadian-American smoke out - a low-pressure system over Maine and Nova Scotia - 'will probably be hanging around at least for the next few days,' U.S. National Weather Service meteorologist Bryan Ramsey said.

'Conditions are likely to remain unhealthy, at least until the wind direction changes or the fires get put out,' Ramsey said. 

'Since the fires are raging - they're really large - they're probably going to continue for weeks. But it's really just going be all about the wind shift.'

New York City has been covered in a thick orange haze.

Visibility across the city's famous skyline was very limited on Wednesday, with only the silhouettes of buildings visible through the smog.

Pictures show people wearing masks, that were commonly used during the Covid-19 pandemic, to protect themselves from the harmful smoke, while officials have warned against doing physical exercise.

The U.S. National Weather Service issued air quality alerts for virtually the entire Atlantic seaboard on Wednesday.

Health officials from Vermont to South Carolina and as far west as Ohio and Kansas warned residents that spending time outdoors could cause respiratory problems due to high levels of fine particulates in the atmosphere.

'It's critical that Americans experiencing dangerous air pollution, especially those with health conditions, listen to local authorities to protect themselves and their families,' President Joe Biden said on Twitter.

U.S. private forecasting service AccuWeather said thick haze and soot extending from high elevations to ground level marked the worst outbreak of wildfire smoke to blanket the Northeastern U.S. in more than 20 years.

Hello and welcome to the DailyMail.com's live blog bringing you the latest news on the Canadian wildfires that are spewing smoke across the border into the U.S.

Hundreds of forest fires have scorched 9.4 million acres and forced 120,000 people from their homes in an unusually early and intense start to the wildfire season.

The skies above New York and many other North American cities grew progressively hazier through Wednesday, with an eerie yellowish tinge filtering through the smoky canopy.

And with weather systems expected to hardly budge, the smoky blanket billowing from Quebec and Nova Scotia and sending plumes of fine particulate matter as far away as North Carolina should persist into Thursday and possibly the weekend.

That means at least another day, or more, of a dystopian-style detour that's chased players from ballfields, actors from Broadway stages, delayed thousands of flights and sparked a resurgence in mask wearing and remote work.

Meanwhile, concerns have been raised about the potential adverse health effects of prolonged exposure to such bad air.

You can read our full story on the wildfires today here: