PENNSYLVANIA, USA — One year ago, what is usually considered a scenic overlook along Route 307 in Scranton was shrouded in haze. For nearly two full days, Pennsylvania was blanketed in smoke from massive wildfires in western Canada.
People Newswatch 16 spoke to described it as something out of a horror film, and you probably remember what it smelled like, too.
Jon Meyer shared viewer photos from all over northeastern and central Pennsylvania showing how much the smoke impacted normally clear views of our downtown areas and mountains.
The wildfire smoke dominated our talkback lines for days.
The City of Scranton kept employees who work outside indoors for a time to keep them safe. Garbage and recycling pickup was put on hold, and the Scranton School District was just one of several in the area to send students home early.
End-of-the-school-year field trips, graduation ceremonies, and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders games were all postponed.
There was a time on June 6 and 7 when the air quality index for northeastern and central Pennsylvania went above 200. That is what DEP officials consider to be Code Purple or very unhealthy levels, urging everyone to remain indoors.
Meteorologists with the National Weather Service say the hazy skies kept temperatures down a few degrees.
Conditions started to improve by June 8, and while we saw hazy skies from wildfire smoke other times throughout the summer and into the fall, it never got as bad as this day last year.