Bosbranden

[corrus]

Ik ga pas in juli maar gisteren contact gehad met onze management company, die ons huis verzorgt.
De bosbranden zijn ongeveer 50 to 55 mijl verder weg. ze beginnen ergens ten zuiden van Tallahasee... maar doordat de wind uit het noorden komt ruik je het behoorlijk. Gisterenochtend leek het wel of het af en toe sneeuwde in DAK... maar gelukkig duurde dit maar kort.

---<stukje uit de e-mail>---

It changes hour by hour.
6AM - slight smoke smell, but hardly noticable
7:15 - Very heavy smoke and quite smelly.
Noon - still heavy and smelly
4PM - no smoke in the air
Shuffle the times, and that's the way it's been for the past 2-3 weeks.

It depends on the wind and weather. Tonight they pulled the Kissimmee evacuations and fully reopened the turnpike. You might see some smoke and it might be bad in some places but I wouldn't expect too bad. Like I said though, it depends on the weather and especially the wind.

Today... winds in the morning were out of the north. Smoke was horrifficaly nasty until around 11ish, when the winds shifted to out of the west, as with this approaching storm. Winds have seemed to have shifted back to the North or Northwest and smoke is clearly visible in the area.

It sucks. More than likely it will affect you on the ground but shouldn't affect the flights.
There are major fires everywhere - The Florida-Georgia line (north), Alachua County/Gainesville (north), Wekiva River (northeast) - That smoke went southwest and smack dab down to Disney and Four Corners 2 days ago - Flagler/Volusia line (east), Polk (southwest), and on and on and on.

Also along I-95 at Palm Coast. (between Jacksonville and Daytona)

DAK was pretty nasty this morning, sometimes it looked like snowing.

---<end>---

[Mickey99]

Op zondag 29 april waren wij in Animal Kingdom en die dag hebben we het voor het eerst een branderige lucht geroken. Er hing ook een heiige lucht, net of het een beetje mistig was. De dagen erna af en toe wel weer wat geroken maar sommige dagen ook weer helemaal geen last gehad. Sinds ons vertrek (5 mei) zijn er nog wel een paar brandjes bijgekomen en hopelijk worden de branden snel geblust door de voorspelde regenbuien.

[Sjimmy]

Je merkt het echt goed. Er wordt ook aangeraden binnen te blijven als er rook is. Zeker in het westen (tenminste een paar dagen terug). Vanaf New Port Richy tot zeker Ft. Meyers hebben we in de rook gereden. We zijn toen expres naar de kust gegaan in de hoop dat daar de rook wat zou optrekken, en dat was gelukkig zo. Op sanibel geen last. En ook in de Everglades en op The Keys (waar we nu zitten) geen last. Je ziet wel in de verte een soort mist hangen en ik vermoed dat de 'mindere' zonsondergang vanavond op Key West ook daardoor kwam....
We zagen hier net op het FL nieuws dat de 'emergency toestand' is uitgeroepen. Dit kan ik alleen nergens terug vinden.
Morgen gaan wij richting Miami, daar blijven we tot maandag en dan daarna wilden we misschien via het binnenland terug, maar dat gaan we ws maar niet doen en blijven we mooi aan de kust.
Alligator Alley (weg 75 van west naar oost) is ook geregeld dicht voor verkeer.

[xl1067]

Health Threat From Wildfire Smoke

Smoke from wildfires is a mixture of gases and fine particles from burning trees and other plant materials. Smoke can hurt your eyes, irritate your respiratory system, and worsen chronic heart and lung diseases.

How to tell if smoke is affecting you
Smoke can cause—

• Coughing
• A scratchy throat
• Irritated sinuses
• Shortness of breath
• Chest pain
• Headaches
• Stinging eyes
• A runny nose
• Asthma exacerbations

If you have heart or lung disease, smoke might make your symptoms worse.
People who have heart disease might experience—

• Chest pain
• Rapid heartbeat
• Shortness of breath
• Fatigue

Smoke may worsen symptoms for people who have pre-existing respiratory conditions, such as respiratory allergies, asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), in the following ways:

• Inability to breathe normally
• Cough with or without mucus
• Chest discomfort
• Wheezing and shortness of breath

When smoke levels are high enough, even healthy people may experience some of these symptoms.


Know whether you are at risk

If you have heart or lung disease, such as congestive heart failure, angina, COPD, emphysema, or asthma, you are at higher risk of having health problems than healthy people.
Older adults are more likely to be affected by smoke, possibly because they are more likely to have heart or lung diseases than younger people.
Children are more likely to be affected by health threats from smoke because their airways are still developing and because they breathe more air per pound of body weight than adults. Children also are more likely to be active outdoors.


Protect yourself

Limit your exposure to smoke. Following are ways to protect your health: Pay attention to local air quality reports. Listen and watch for news or health warnings about smoke. Find out if your community provides reports about the Environmental Protection Agency's Air Quality Index (AQI). Also pay attention to public health messages about taking additional safety measures.

Refer to visibility guides if they are available. Not every community has a monitor that measures the amount of particles that are in the air. In the western part of the United States, some communities have guidelines to help people estimate AQI based on how far they can see.

If you are advised to stay indoors, keep indoor air as clean as possible. Keep windows and doors closed unless it is extremely hot outside. Run an air conditioner if you have one, but keep the fresh-air intake closed and the filter clean to prevent outdoor smoke from getting inside. If you do not have an air conditioner and it is too warm to stay inside with the windows closed, seek shelter elsewhere.

Do not add to indoor pollution. When smoke levels are high, do not use anything that burns, such as candles, fireplaces, or gas stoves. Do not vacuum, because vacuuming stirs up particles already inside your home. Do not smoke, because smoking puts even more pollution into the air.

Follow your doctor's advice about medicines and about your respiratory management plan if you have asthma or another lung disease, Call your doctor if your symptoms worsen.

Do not rely on dust masks for protection. Paper "comfort" or "dust" masks commonly found at hardware stores are designed to trap large particles, such as sawdust. These masks will not protect your lungs from smoke. An “N95” mask, properly worn, will offer some protection. For more information about effective masks, see the Respirator Fact Sheet provided by CDC’s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

Safe evacuation
As you evacuate and then return home, be cautious and take the same safety measures you would when there is no emergency: buckle up and do not drink and drive. See CDC’s Impaired Driving fact sheet for more information on these hazards.
Also, make sure that children are properly buckled up and in the rear seat. See CDC’s Child Passenger Safety fact sheet for more information.

Power outages
Power outages can be more than an inconvenience. Click on the What You Need to Know When the Power Goes Out page for more information about carbon monoxide poisoning, food safety, safe drinking water, power line hazards and more.

De meeste van deze dingen spreken voor zich maar ik dacht dat het misschien tot handig was om dit "check" lijstje op het forum te planten voor de huidige en toekomstige reizigers. Het lijstje komt overigens van The Department of Health and Human Services.

--> http://www.bt.cdc.gov/disasters/wildfires/facts.asp


Hieronder staat een link waar je de verwachte luchtkwaliteit kan bekijken voor de regio Orlando.

--> http://airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=a...cal&cityid=176

[blondina]

Hallo,

iK woon in Westchase, Hillsborough County. en Hier hebben we al 2 keer ' haze' gehad met de brand geur.
De branden zijn ook in Georgia, en als er noorderwind is ruik je het erg.
Ook lag er as in de patio, de kinderen mogen tijdens hun schoolpauzes niet naar buiten en de footballgames zijn gecancelled

[Michael66]

I-10 @ Lake City (afgesloten voor verkeer)

[stephie]

Wij zijn 8 mei gearriveerd in Tampa en de volgende dag naar Orlando gegaan. In Orlando hing wel een brandlucht maar verder niet echt last gehad. Dat weekend gingen we via Ocala naar st. Augustine, was bang dat we die route niet konden rijden i.v.m. de bosbranden. Viel gelukkig ook reuze mee, geen branden gezien in de omgeving.

Op het journaal zag je wel steeds die dichte 'mist' en afgesloten wegen, dus ik had wel verwacht dat we er mee te maken zouden krijgen.

[ekkie50]

Michael, ik heb totaal geen last van branden en rookoverlast gehad gedurende mijn vakantie (18 mei t/m 25 mei) in het westelijk deel van Kissimmee (Formosa Gardens Blvd).
Niets gezien en niets geroken. Ik was er eerst ook beducht voor. Wat me wel opviel was dat er nogal wat wind stond en er daardoor zandstormen ontstonden rondom de (vele) wijken in aanbouw. Bijvoorbeeld bij route 27, en in Poinciana.