Good morning, the smoke is still here. Air quality deteriorated in many parts of New York on Wednesday, hitting “hazardous” levels in Syracuse and New York City. Reports this morning show quality is beginning to improve, but it's still rated as "unhealthy" or "very unhealthy" in those areas. New Yorkers haven’t seen smog like this since the 1960s, before the federal Clean Air Act went into effect. Mayor Eric Adams is now advising that everyone stay indoors, instead of just medically vulnerable populations. Gov. Kathy Hochul said she will make 1 million N95 masks available at locations throughout the state. The city has canceled outdoor events, shuttered its beaches and suspended alternate side parking. Broadway shows and Shakespeare in the Park closed their curtains. The Staten Island Ferry is operating on a reduced schedule, and flights were grounded out of LaGuardia Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport. City officials didn’t have to make a call on school, with students already scheduled to have the day off. But educators were told to work remotely as officials assess whether to hold classes on Friday. Hochul has called the situation a “crisis” that could continue into the weekend. Smoke from the wildfires in Canada has been descending into New York City since last week, but conditions rapidly deteriorated on Tuesday and caught elected leaders flat-footed. Adams gave his first official statement on the wildfires Tuesday night, once the city’s air quality hit levels considered “very unhealthy.” “We need a full accounting and oversight hearing on why the City failed to respond to these conditions in a timely manner to ensure we aren’t caught unprepared again,” Council Member Lincoln Restler tweeted. Jumaane Williams, the city public advocate, also said that the “alerts and recommendations could and should have been made both earlier and more clearly.” Adams has defended his administration’s response, noting the situation was “extremely fast moving” and there were still alerts sent on Tuesday. “What we should really try to prevent doing is to give any indication that this administration did not proactively respond and did not move in the right direction to let New Yorkers know,” he said. Fabien Levy, a spokesperson for the mayor, said the city is taking “a whole of government approach” to an unprecedented event. “These criticisms from the same old politicians simply do not reflect the reality on the ground that Mayor Adams personally saw [Wednesday night] while handing out masks at a [New York City Housing Authority] facility,” Levy said. He continued: “As the mayor said today, we have faced crises before as a city, and we will get through this together, even while certain politicians simply seek to sow division for their own political gain.” IT’S THURSDAY. WHERE’S KATHY? In Albany, with no public events scheduled. WHERE’S ERIC? In New York City, delivering remarks at the opening session of his summit on social media and its impact on young people. After, he will make a small business announcement and meet with recipients of the Mayoral Service Recognition Awards. Then, he will deliver remarks at an annual interfaith roundtable hosted by Rep. Adriano Espaillat. Later, he will receive an award at the Hunter College New York City Food Policy Center’s annual 40 Under 40 Award Ceremony. Finally, he will deliver remarks at the annual New York City Police Foundation gala.
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