Bad air from fire expected to last through Sunday as L.A. area copes with the smoke

Large swaths of the Los Angeles Basin were blanketed with smoke from a brush fire this afternoon, prompting health warnings from county officials and a good amount of  itchy eyes, runny noses and sneezing.

Forecaster blame a lack of wind -- which is helping firefighters battling the blaze in the Angeles National Forest -- for keeping the smoke in the basin.

"The L.A. Basin is a big cul-de-sac. To the north and the east we're bounded by some pretty high mountains," said Bill Patzert, a climatologist with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Cañada Flintridge. "The basin is just filling up with this smoke."

 

He estimated that the smoke would hang until Sunday because the high-pressure system was not moving. "It's sitting right over us," Patzert said. "We're sitting in the smoke until Sunday. It's going to get hotter and smokier."

 

"This morning it smelled like fire," said Winnie Zhou, a cashier at Queen's Bakery in Chinatown, which serves up pastries like egg custard bread and buns filled with red bean paste. "It was hard to breathe and I felt like my nose was dry."

 

Large swaths of the Los Angeles Basin were blanketed with smoke from a brush fire this afternoon, prompting health warnings from county officials and a good amount of  itchy eyes, runny noses and sneezing.

Forecaster blame a lack of wind -- which is helping firefighters battling the blaze in the Angeles National Forest -- for keeping the smoke in the basin.

"The L.A. Basin is a big cul-de-sac. To the north and the east we're bounded by some pretty high mountains," said Bill Patzert, a climatologist with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Cañada Flintridge. "The basin is just filling up with this smoke."

 

He estimated that the smoke would hang until Sunday because the high-pressure system was not moving. "It's sitting right over us," Patzert said. "We're sitting in the smoke until Sunday. It's going to get hotter and smokier."

 

"This morning it smelled like fire," said Winnie Zhou, a cashier at Queen's Bakery in Chinatown, which serves up pastries like egg custard bread and buns filled with red bean paste. "It was hard to breathe and I felt like my nose was dry."

 

 

Zhou arrived today at 8:30 a.m. and immediately turned on the air conditioner, hoping to combat the dust and heat.

 

Her co-worker, Maggie Alcaraz, 25, said the smoke was worsening her flu-like symptoms that started earlier in the week. "I'm already congested and it's even worse now," she said. "But I don't even want to breathe in since it's smoky."

The outdoor tables and chairs offered by sidewalk cafes were mostly empty on Lake Avenue in Pasadena. The usual lunch crowd was smaller than usual, with many people choosing to sit indoors, seeking respite from the heat. Others tried to make their venture outside as short as possible.

"This dry weather is especially bad for my skin," said Marlon Franco, 20, quickly walking to Jamba Juice to grab something to take back to the office where she interns. "You can tell something's in the air," she said. "It's not a good smell and you can feel it in your lungs."

Public health officials said air quality is unhealthy throughout the county, and the top health officer recommended people take precautions when going outdoors.

“We are also advising schools that are in session in smoke-impacted areas to suspend outside physical activities in these areas, including physical education and after-school sports, until conditions improve,” Dr. Jonathan Fielding, Los Angeles County’s director of public health, said in a statement.

Officials also recommended Little Leagues cancel practices and people refrain from outdoor activities, such as hikes or picnics, in places where there is an odor of smoke or where soot is visible.

People with heart disease, asthma and other respiratory problems were urged to take serious precautions and stay indoors as much as possible.

According to the South Coast Air Quality Management District, air quality levels were moderate in Inglewood, Long Beach and Compton, and unhealthy in Pomona, Santa Clarita, West Covina, El Monte and Duarte.

The agency released a smoke advisory this morning, saying the fire is severely affecting portions of the L.A. Basin and that smoke had settled into the San Gabriel Valley overnight.

“Onshore ocean breezes during the day are expected to move smoke into the mountains, and smoke impacts to the San Gabriel, Pomona and San Bernardino valleys to the east are also likely,” agency officials said in a statement.

View the Morris fire in a larger map.

The fire in the Angeles National Forest, named the Morris fire, had burned at least 750 acres by this morning and was 10% contained, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

Lisa Lugo, a spokeswoman for the forest service, said the fire was burning in steep terrain and was not threatening any homes. No injuries had been reported, she said.

The National Weather Service has issued a red flag warning for mountain areas in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Ventura and San Luis Obispo counties.

-- Ari B. Bloomekatz in Los Angeles and Corina Knoll in the San Gabriel Valley

Photo: Smoke from the Morris fire in the Angeles National Forest obscures the downtown Los Angeles skyline. Credit: Rick Loomis  / Los Angeles Times

 

Zhou arrived today at 8:30 a.m. and immediately turned on the air conditioner, hoping to combat the dust and heat.

 

Her co-worker, Maggie Alcaraz, 25, said the smoke was worsening her flu-like symptoms that started earlier in the week. "I'm already congested and it's even worse now," she said. "But I don't even want to breathe in since it's smoky."

Public health officials said air quality is unhealthy throughout the county, and the top health officer recommended people take precautions when going outdoors.

“We are also advising schools that are in session in smoke-impacted areas to suspend outside physical activities in these areas, including physical education and after-school sports, until conditions improve,” Dr. Jonathan Fielding, Los Angeles County’s director of public health, said in a statement.

Officials also recommended Little Leagues cancel practices and people refrain from outdoor activities, such as hikes or picnics, in places where there is an odor of smoke or where soot is visible.

People with heart disease, asthma and other respiratory problems were urged to take serious precautions and stay indoors as much as possible.

According to the South Coast Air Quality Management District, air quality levels were moderate in Inglewood, Long Beach and Compton, and unhealthy in Pomona, Santa Clarita, West Covina, El Monte and Duarte.

The agency released a smoke advisory this morning, saying the fire is severely affecting portions of the L.A. Basin and that smoke had settled into the San Gabriel Valley overnight.

“Onshore ocean breezes during the day are expected to move smoke into the mountains, and smoke impacts to the San Gabriel, Pomona and San Bernardino valleys to the east are also likely,” agency officials said in a statement.

View the Morris fire in a larger map.

The fire in the Angeles National Forest, named the Morris fire, had burned at least 750 acres by this morning and was 10% contained, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

Lisa Lugo, a spokeswoman for the forest service, said the fire was burning in steep terrain and was not threatening any homes. No injuries had been reported, she said.

The National Weather Service has issued a red flag warning for mountain areas in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Ventura and San Luis Obispo counties.

-- Ari B. Bloomekatz in Los Angeles and Corina Knoll in the San Gabriel Valley

Photo: Smoke from the Morris fire in the Angeles National Forest obscures the downtown Los Angeles skyline. Credit: Rick Loomis  / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[HannahJane]

Why is someone with flu like symptoms reporting to work at an eatery? If you're sick and you work around food, please stay home!