Two of the major US coasts have completely different climates: the East experiences massive snowstorms and the West experiences wildfires. However, one thing is common: poor air quality is traveling to the East Coast.
Over in Los Angeles, the Santa Ana winds mixed with rare cases of dry weather in winter caused a major uproar in the city. A fire sparked at the beginning of January, growing at a massive pace, destroying thousands of civilians’ homes, and displacing them without food or shelter. These fires were recorded to have been aided by the extremely dry season, with the county receiving 0.14 centimeters of rain since October and over 83% of the region experiencing a drought.
As seen on the NBC news channel, 12,000 buildings have been destroyed and 160,000 civilians are under evacuation. Organizations including the Wildlife Relief Fund and the American Red Cross are providing shelter, food, water, clothes, and health services for those who need aid while providing donations to accepting areas requiring immediate relief.
Seen over the East Coast, they are experiencing cold weather comparable to or even colder than a century ago, with recent cold snaps breaking some records set over a hundred years prior. In Louisville, Kentucky, it has reached record-breaking cases of snow since the February 1998 storms, with 15.7 inches of snow. To clear the roads, the city has a Metro Snow Team which uses around 160 pieces of equipment to prioritize major roads, school bus routes, and emergency lanes. However, many neighborhood streets throughout the city are not being cleared unless a snow emergency is declared, leaving the icy streets unable to be accessed safely. To solve this issue, the Metro Snow Team has purchased more than 30 million pounds of salt to spread on the roads that have been iced over.
Unfortunately, the issue of poor air quality cannot be eradicated quickly and will take time to recover, but at this pace, it may be months until it returns back to normal, especially with the level of climate change constantly altering the atmosphere.
