Air Quality In Southern Oregon Worst In Nation

Smoke from wildfires in southern Oregon has caused air quality in the area to be the worst in the nation, according to an AirNow.gov report. The lack of wind caused wildfire smoke to affect air quality in nearby towns.

Currently, Oregon has four of the top five towns in the U.S. with the worst air quality, AirNow.gov reported Tuesday afternoon. The towns were Klamath Falls with "very unhealthy air" with Shady Cove, Medford and Ashland reporting unhealthy air. AirNow.gov tracks air quality across the U.S.

In Shady Cove, the Department of Environmental Quality recorded "hazardous" air on Monday. Officials recommended wearing a mask outdoors as dozens of wildfires are creating smoky conditions throughout the region.

“We don’t expect conditions to improve much over the next several days,” Katherine Benenati, spokeswoman for DEQ told the Medford Mail Tribune. Small children and pregnant women should consider leaving the valley, the Tribune reported.

Current conditions can be viewed on the Department of Environmental Quality's air quality map.

A GoFundMe account has been created to help victims of the Substation wildfire with groceries and transportation. A second GoFundMe account has been set up to feed a herd of cattle that survived the fire.

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Image via GoFundMe, a Patch partner