NEW ORLEANS — The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality has issued an air quality alert for most of the New Orleans metro area and South Shore for Friday until 7 p.m.
The forecast for Friday calls for a Code Orange, which means air quality could become unhealthy for sensitive groups, including children, the elderly, and those with respiratory diseases such as asthma. Those groups should avoid prolonged outdoor activity, particularly the afternoon hours through sunset.
Winds will be calm to very light for Friday which gives pollutants the opportunity to build as they aren’t being dispersed by the winds. Also, the pollutants from Thursday afternoon, when we were in a moderate category, will carry over without the wind to carry it away.
This combined with the heat we’re going to see, which will help ozone production, means the air quality index will be over 100, triggering the air quality alert.
The parishes included in the alert are: Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, and St. John the Baptist Parishes.