Local Advisory Issued About Poor Air Quality

Photo by: BJ Hansen

Sonora, CA — The 7,800-acre Quarry Fire in the Stanislaus National Forest, combined with regional prescribed burning, is creating some unhealthy air quality in parts of the region.

The Tuolumne County Public Health Department and the Air Pollution Control District have put out a joint advisory through Thursday, warning of poor air quality.

It states, “Tuolumne County as with several counties in the area are experiencing air quality conditions that range from moderate to very unhealthy dependent on the time of day and where you reside. Warming and drying trends continues through Thursday October 19.”

It continues, “Smoke will generally stay lifted until the overnight hours when smoke potentially will drain into Strawberry, Pinecrest, areas along HWY 108 and lower elevation areas. Heaviest smoke will generally occur between midnight and 6am.”

Tips noted in the county’s air quality advisory:

• Stay indoors with the windows and doors closed; if possible, run the air conditioner on
the “recirculation” setting

• Limit outdoor physical activity

• Leave the smoke-impacted areas if possible until conditions improve

• Reduce unnecessary driving. If traveling through smoke-impacted areas, be sure that your vehicle’s ventilation system is on recirculate

• Non‐HEPA paper face mask filters and bandana-type face coverings are not capable of filtering out extra fine smoke particulates which are much smaller in size. Therefore, they will not be helpful in protecting individuals from smoke-related impacts.

To view local air quality in real-time, click here.