Air quality still unhealthy for some across northern Illinois

For the first time in what felt like years, Festa Italiana over Boylan Catholic High School went on without any high heat and humidity. 

What was present however was lots of wildfire smoke from fires in Canada and out west. This left our air quality either in the level 3 "unhealthy for some" and at times in the level 4 "unhealthy" category. As of this morning, most of the Stateline is sitting in the "unhealthy for some" category, meaning those with heart and lung issues, older adults, and small children may want to refrain from spending prolonged periods of time outdoors.

When will we see relief? Well, according to the model we use to track wildfire smoke, improvements should slowly filter in over the next 24-36 hours. 

We remain smokey and hazy today, though the thicker wildfire smoke should push east by the time we head into the early stages of Wednesday morning. This will put the AQI (air quality index) back under 100 which is category 2 "moderate" levels.