RIAU24.COM – Smoke from Canada's wildfires continues to plague the United States and has triggered air quality alerts in at least 11 states across the region. Midwest, Plains And Big lakes on Sunday.

As forecasters predict, nearly 60 million people from Montana to Ohio will experience poor air quality and reduced visibility, including residents of Cedar Rapids, Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis and Washington. Louis and Cleveland.

The air quality index was in the “unhealthy” range Sunday, between level 4 and 6, across much of the Northern Plains, from Montana to Illinois.

“Even though atmospheric smoke concentrations will begin to decrease on Monday, there will still be enough smoke to support unhealthy air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups in parts of the region until early next week ” said the National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center.

As experts have indicated, the smoke will be pushed eastward by winds that will bring a smoky haze to the northeast early this week.

The British Columbia Fire Service said the plume was up from the 400 fires that ravaged the province of British Columbia last week, almost half of which started after 51,000 lightning strikes caused by thunderstorms.

Canadian authorities announced on Sunday the death of a second firefighter due to forest fires.

“We regret to share the tragic news that a Fort Liard firefighter died from injuries sustained while fighting a fire in the Fort Liard District on Saturday afternoon,” said the NT- Western Canada in a press release.

The death of the first firefighter, who was battling a blaze near the town of Revelstoke in southeastern British Columbia, was confirmed by authorities on Thursday.

“I am deeply saddened by the news from the Northwest Territories that another firefighter has lost his life while battling wildfires,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted on Sunday.

“To their families, their friends and the people with whom they served so valiantly: Canadians keep you in our thoughts. We are here for you,” he added.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says wildfire smoke is filled with tiny pollutants called particulate matter or PM 2.5 and can enter the bloodstream and lungs after being inhaled.

He added that pollutants typically cause eye and throat irritation and difficulty breathing and have been linked to more serious long-term health problems, such as lung cancer.

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