Thursday’s weather: not good, but better

WATERTOWN, New York (WWNY) - Good morning! Let’s deal with what everybody’s concerned with first - the smoke and haze caused by those Canadian wildfires.

Yesterday was awful, and if you use that as the standard, today should be somewhat better. We’re starting out with “moderate” air quality in most places, which changes to “unhealthy” in the Watertown area and along the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario in Jefferson County as the day goes on.

Once again, an air quality alert is in effect for east of Lake Ontario.. Stay indoors if you can, and wear a protective mask if spending a significant amount of time outdoors. Children, the elderly and people with lung and heart problems need to be especially careful.

The affected area, like yesterday, is that slice of the north country along the lake and river in Jefferson Country and extending into the Watertown area.

In the rest of the north country, the air quality today is forecast to be moderate - not an issue for healthy people, but if you have a condition of some sort, take extra precautions.

What makes today better than yesterday? While we’re forecast to have “unhealthy” air, yesterday it was “very unhealthy.” In other words, it’s still bad for you. Maybe not quite as bad.

We may have another day or two of this before the air clears completely. Be patient.

As for the rest of the weather, an ‘eh’ day. Overcast, maybe a little rain, high in the mid-60s. The clouds will, at least, help it to feel a little bit more like normal. Tonight, more of the same, with a low in the mid-40s.

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