Drivers Told to Avoid Gas Stations in 4 States - Newsweek
Residents of four U.S. states have been asked to refill their vehicles with gas in the early morning or evening due to poor air quality reports.
Numerous states are subject to air quality alerts issued by the National Weather Service (NWS) throughout Friday. Residents in affected areas of these states are asked to "take whatever voluntary steps [they] can to reduce emissions that contribute to ozone formation," which includes driving less and, in some cases, waiting until after 6 p.m. local times to refill vehicles.
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The following states have air quality alerts in place for Friday, June 14. These do not necessarily cover the entire state area:
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- California
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Georgia
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- New Jersey
- New York
- Oklahoma
- North Carolina
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Texas
Those in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi have a "no refill before 6 p.m." advisory in place. In Oklahoma, residents are asked to fill up very early in the morning or after sundown. Specific locations where alerts are in place are contained in the map below.
"The Air Quality Index (AQI) indicates that ozone will be at the Orange level, which is unhealthy for sensitive groups," the alert reads. "Increasing ozone levels may cause unhealthy air quality during afternoon hours. Active children and adults, the elderly, and people with respiratory diseases such as asthma should avoid prolonged outdoor exertion."
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The Air Quality Index (AQI) is an index for reporting daily air quality, measuring how clean or polluted the air is where you live. A code orange is the fourth-most serious, labeled "unhealthy for sensitive groups," when the air quality is between 101 and 150 on the AQI scale.
The air quality alert does not amount to a health warning, which is issued at level 5—the second-most serious code purple, labeled "very unhealthy"—when poor air quality is expected to have an adverse effect on almost everyone.
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Those living under an air quality alert of any level orange and higher are also advised to take steps to keep themselves safe, including staying inside if possible, "particularly if you have respiratory concerns or other health problems, are a senior or child," the NWS has said. "If you must go out, try to limit the amount of time you are out to strictly essential activities."
"Minimize your use of items that increase pollution, such as cars, gas powered lawn mowers and other vehicles," advice from the NWS continues. "Do not burn debris or other items during an air quality alert."
This is the second time an air quality alert has been issued in Alabama this week. Along with Colorado and Indiana, residents were advised to take the same steps as above to reduce emissions under another code orange air quality alert.
A map created by Newsweek showing states with air quality advisories in place.
A map created by Newsweek showing states with air quality advisories in place.
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