LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — It's smokey out there!
The hazy horizons visible around Las Vegas are clear indicators of reduced air quality, so Channel 13 took the questions about what exactly residents are breathing to Clark County—which monitors 18 AQI stations in the area.
VIDEO: Geneva Zoltek reports the latest on air quality in Las Vegas Valley
"We have several instruments here that you can see all these racks of instruments that help us to analyze air quality and that helps synthesize the data that funnels back into our systems," Kevin MacDanold, spokesperson for Clark County's Air Quality division said.
Inside a one-car garage-sized building near Jerome Mack Middle School, a complex system analyzes to the second how much of any pollutant is in the air at a time, including ozone, nitrogen oxide, and particulate matter, which is how wildfire smoke is measured.
"With the smaller the particulate matter, the deeper in your lungs it can be inhaled, so we measure those two sizes that, according to federal regulation for that reason," MacDanold said.
That's PM2.5 and PM10. Over the past few days, thick smoke and other pollutants like ozone have worsened levels to unhealthy for sensitive individuals in pockets of the valley.
It's something that's hard to ignore over the past few days, as the nearby Gothic Fire continues to burn upwards of 36,000 acres in Nye County.
Local resident Brian Perry noticed: "It's blowing this way, that means we're receiving secondhand smoke, so to speak."
"I see it where I live in Centennial Hills in the morning, you see this cloud that hovers over because we're in a valley obviously," Perry said.
The poor air quality this time of year typically comes down to patterns of high pressure sitting over the region.
"One of the big issues is we don't have a lot of wind. All those pollutants that help produce ozone they sit here and cook. The one thing we talk about in Clark County is it's a perfect oven to cook ozone because of our geography, our topography and our climate," MacDanold said.
Residents can easily track air quality in their neighborhoods using smartphone technology.
"We have what's called the Air Now app, and it's an EPA app, but that's our data there. They'll give you real-time air quality information wherever you are. So this right now is where I'm located. So it's the air quality is at 97 AQI, which is pretty high," MacDanold said.
For those with asthma or other sensitivities to reduced air quality, N95 masks—which block 95% of fine particles from entering the lungs—can provide protection, similar to their use during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
