Wednesday, July 21, 2021 Vol. 44, No. 29
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YOUR LOCAL PAPER
HOLE IN ONE
Becky Carrington achieved a Hole in One on Sunday, July 11, on hole five at Viking Golf Club. She was using her seven hybrid club. The Golf Club extended a huge congratulations to Becky after the achievement.
Region under air quality and fire advisories, dry conditions persist Patricia Harcourt Editor
Viking and other towns and villages in the area along with the rural dwellers in the county are having to live with very low air quality due to wildfires in BC. Hot weather has also meant a fire advisory that was put in place since June 29. Smoke inundated the area over the weekend making breathing outside hazardous while creeping into houses and affecting air quality there as well. A special air quality statement was made by Environment Canada on both Sunday and Monday. Heat and smoke alerts had been issued for much of the province as smoke made its way to Alberta from the interior of BC where wildfires are raging out of control. Smoke from Saskatchewan’s forest fires is also moving into the province. The statement warned that wildfire smoke was causing poor air quality and reducing visibility as well. Most people closed all their doors and windows in an attempt to block the smoke from filtering into their houses, but many failed. Air purifiers can only do so much but are definitely a plus if a person has them. The statement declared that “very high AQHI values are being reported
Nestled in the heart of the Alberta prairie lands, the family-owned K3 Corn Maze allows guests to connect with nature, create lasting memories, and build new family traditions.
through much of Alberta and are expected to remain high through midweek in central and northern regions.” These conditions can change hour by hour and over short distances. Saturday the region was at “high risk” of persons suffering a negative health affect if they were outside, with an Air Quality Health Index of 7-10. Alberta Health Services warned of symptoms that may be experienced by persons exposed to the wildfire smoke. The symptoms included coughing, throat irritation, headaches, or shortness of breath. Especially prone to being affected by this are people with lung diseases such as asthma and COPD. “They will generally experience more serious health effects at lower levels,” warned the advisory. “Pollution can aggravate their diseases, leading to increased medication use, doctor and emergency room visits, and hospital stays. The smoky conditions are expected to remain until at least mid-week in central and northern regions of the province. People concerned about the possible effects of smoke on their health can visit www.airhealth.ca for information on how to reduce their health risk. See AIR QUALITY P8
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