Air Quality Alert Issued For Holbrook Due To Ozone

HOLBROOK, NY — An air quality alert has been issued for parts of Nassau and Suffolk counties, including Holbrook, due to high levels of ozone. The National Weather Service issued the alert Thursday morning.

When pollution levels are elevated, state health officials recommend residents consider limiting "strenuous outdoor physical activity," the alert said. This is to reduce possible adverse health effects, especially in young kids and those with asthma or other breathing problems.

Breathing in ground-level ozone can be harmful to your health, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wrote on its website. Ozone can worsen symptoms for those with asthma, bronchitis or emphysema. It's also linked to coughing and pain while taking a deep breath, lung and throat irritation, and wheezing and trouble breathing during exercise or outdoor activities.

It's important to note that ozone can affect anyone.

Summer heat can lead to the formation of ground-level ozone, which state health officials said is a major component of photochemical smog. Vehicle exhaust and out-of-state emissions are the primary sources of ground-level ozone and are the most serious air pollution problems in the Northeast.