Protect yourself from the dangerous haze of wildfire smoke

It visibly lingers in the air, during and after a wildfire: a thick blanket of smoke and soot coupled with ash coating parked cars.

Santa Ana winds can spread these clouds of unhealthy air pollution from active fire zones and burn scars to different parts of the region.

Experts caution that everyone should take precautions against unhealthy air, not just those with pre-existing conditions.

Your next assignment is to learn about the health impacts of these plumes of unhealthy smoke and how you can care for yourself and others.

What are the health impacts of wildfire smoke?

Wildfire smoke has toxic materials within it such as lead, asbestos and arsenic.

“The main component of smoke is particulate matter that can penetrate deep into the lungs, which directly causes respiratory issues, but it can also enter the bloodstream where it can cause a range of other health issues,” said Anne Kelsey Lamb, director of Regional Asthma Management and Prevention at the Public Health Institute.

This can be extremely harmful to the lungs of at-risk people, including children whose lungs are still developing, pregnant women, older adults and those with asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or diabetes, according to the American Lung Assn.

Exposure to air pollution such as wildfire smoke can also lead to the onset of asthma in otherwise healthy people, Lamb said.

What’s elevating the health risk are the toxic chemicals from plastics, paint from the house and furniture that also pollute the air after fires destroy buildings, homes and cars, said Anthony Wexler, director of the Air Quality Research Center at UC Davis.

Researchers are still working to understand the relative toxicity of these specific chemical pollutants during a fire event.

In the face of uncertainty, he said, “people should protect themselves as much as they can.”

The do’s and don’ts of preparing for unhealthy air

Do: You’ll want to stay inside with the doors and windows closed. Avoid letting the polluted outside air in by placing damp rags at the bottoms of doors or windows.

Do: Cleaning while you’re staying indoors is okay as long as you dust or mop surfaces with a damp cloth, the EPA says, to keep settled particles from getting back into the air.

Do: Inside, on a hot day? Stay cool by running fans or your central air conditioning. If your HVAC system or window air conditioner has a fresh-air option (that is, it pulls air from outside), turn it off and close the intake, or set the system to recirculate.

Do: Think about which room can be your clean air space. This is an interior room where you can completely shut all doors and windows and run a HEPA air purifier. A HEPA purifier moves air through its filter to trap particles, odors and more without introducing anything into the air. These purifiers clean a certain amount of square footage, though, so when buying a purifier, make sure it can clean the air in the room you’ve chosen. Don’t use an ionizer air purifier in your clean air space because it can create ozone.

Don’t: Create smoke or bad air inside by smoking cigarettes, cigars or pipes; using gas, propane or wood-burning stoves or cookers; spraying aerosol products; frying or broiling food; burning candles or incense; and vacuuming, unless the vacuum has a HEPA filter.

Don’t: Go outside if you don’t have to.

Don’t: Leave a DIY air purifier unattended.

How can I check the air quality in my area?

There are several ways to check your local air quality.

• AirNow, the website and the app, created by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency includes information from its permanent air quality monitors as well as temporary air quality monitors that will be put in place during a big wildfire event. It has an updated “Fire and Smoke” map, or you can enter your ZIP Code and check the air in your community.
• PurpleAir is a company that helps monitor air quality by selling easy-to-install sensors with real-time data on various particulate matter levels. PurpleAir has a free online map with real-time air quality data.
• Your local Air Quality Management District issues advisories, guidance and warnings in regards to air quality impacts. You can search for your local department by checking AirNow’s online list of state and local partners.

All resources will provide a number for the air quality index. If it’s greater than 100, that is considered unhealthy for sensitive and at-risk groups. If it’s greater than 150, it is considered unhealthy for all people.

Air quality instrumentation, which measures AQI, was created to measure common air pollutants including smog, carbon monoxide and particulate matter.

It does not detect toxic substances such as asbestos, lead and other health metals, according to the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability. It also cannot always detect ash particles.

However, the presence of ash is visible whether it’s falling from the sky or collecting on your outdoor plants.

If you have to be outside, here’s how to stay safe

Experts note children, pregnant women, older adults and those with pre-existing conditions should try to stay indoors as much as possible during an unhealthy air quality event.

If you have to go outside, experts recommend wearing an N95 mask.

Those are really the only masks that are going to filter out the damaging fine particles, Lamb said.

“The surgical masks allow too much air to get in, because it’s not the tight fit,” she said. “It doesn’t filter out as fine of particles as the N95 does.”

Researchers have looked into wearing cloth masks during wildfire smoke and found that it “led to more exposure because some of the smoke sort of settled in the material and then it was continuously breathed in,” Lamb said.

Bearded men need to shave or at least cut back facial hair as much as possible so that a protective mask makes a firm seal around the face, keeping pollutants out.

It’s not easy to assess what steps you need to take to stay healthy during a fire event, but you now have the information to plan how you would take care of yourself when disaster strikes. Experts strongly suggest you watch out for guidance from public health officials and air quality resources.

Look for the next installment of In Case of Fire, the L.A. Times’ newsletter guide to wildfire readiness and resilience, in your inbox. You’ve got your fourth preparedness assignment, the next will be what you need to know about filing insurance claims.