Evanston and the rest of the Chicago metro area are under an Air Quality Alert through midnight Wednesday.
Smoke from wildfires in Canada has moved over the region, raising fine particulate matter levels to a “very unhealthy” level of 228 micrograms per cubic meter of air as of 12:30 p.m.Tuesday.
The National Weather Service advises that active children and adults, especially people with pulmonary or respiratory disease such as asthma, should avoid long or intense outdoor activity. Everyone else should reduce outdoor activity.
More information about precautions to take is available online.
The Evanston Police Department announced this noon that all Evanston beaches have been closed for the remainder of the day as a result of the air quality issues.
Update 4:50 p.m.: The city announced late Tuesday afternoon that the Robert Crown Community Center at 1801 Main St. will be available as a clean air center until 10 p.m. Tuesday and from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Wednesday.
Anyone needing shelter outside those hours is asked to call the 311 center at 847-448-4311 or the police service desk at 847-866-5000.
May be prudent to break out those old COVID-19 N-95 Respirators if one plans on being outside for any length of time tonight and tomorrow. Reducing and filtering out the intake of particulate matter is exactly what N-95 masks were designed to do.
Are Chicago beaches closed? Are Wilmette’s? Are Winnetka’s?
The various agencies websites report …
Wilmette’s Gillson beach is open https://wilmettepark.org/air-quality-alert-july-28-2023/
Chicago beaches are open but show a swim advisory https://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/parks-facilities/beaches
Some open, some closed in Winnetka https://www.winpark.org/beaches-parks/beaches/
— Bill