Air in Massachusetts is “unhealthy” for children and adults with asthma, lung or heart disease, and older adults, according to the National Weather Service.
The weather service issued an air quality alert until 11 p.m. Tuesday for cities and towns across Massachusetts, including Framingham, Lowell, Lawrence, Gloucester, Amherst, Northampton, Springfield, Milford and Worcester.
“Sensitive children and adults should limit prolonged outdoor activity,” the weather service wrote.
Ground-level ozone is the state’s primary seasonal pollutant, and its formation depends on temperature and sunlight to create “smog,” when emissions from cars, power plants, factories and other sources chemically react.
Ozone can irritate the respiratory system, reduce lung function, aggravate existing conditions and damage lung-lining cells.
People should watch for symptoms such as coughing or shortness of breath, the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection warns.
Additional dangers come from Tuesday’s heat.
“Dangerous heat and humidity … peaks in the Wednesday through Friday time frame,” National Weather Service forecasters wrote. “Near to record breaking high temperatures are possible.”
A heat wave for the northeast is defined as three or more consecutive days of at least 90-degree temperatures, according to AccuWeather. The way the forecast is shaping up, Massachusetts could see four days of temperatures that high.
