KEENE, NH – The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services has issued an Air Quality Alert for Cheshire and other counties due to wildfires happening in Canada.

NHDES said in a news release that fine particle air pollution was expected to reach unhealthy levels for sensitive individuals in Belknap, Cheshire, Grafton, Hillsborough, Merrimack, and Sullivan Counties, and at elevations above 3,000 feet on Tuesday and Wednesday this week due to what the department called extensive wildfires in Eastern Canada.

“Current wind patterns are transporting waves of smoke from these fires across much of the country, including northern New England and New Hampshire,” the release said.

NHDES officials are calling for an Air Quality Action Day and are advising sensitive individuals to take precautions and limit prolonged outdoor exertion.

Sensitive individuals include children and older adults, anyone with lung disease such as asthma, emphysema, and bronchitis, and people who are active outdoors. NHDES says healthy individuals may experience mild health effects as well and should consider limiting strenuous or prolonged outdoor activities.

Symptoms of particle pollution exposure may include chest pain, palpitations, shortness of breath, and difficulty breathing. People with asthma and other existing lung diseases may not be able to breathe as deeply or vigorously as normal and may experience symptoms such as coughing and shortness of breath.

There may also be a haze in the sky, limiting the visibility of distant objects.