Air quality in Delaware, region improves to moderate conditions

A smoky haze that lingered across Delaware for several days due to Canadian wildfires cleared up significantly on Saturday morning.

The First State recorded “moderate” air quality conditions on Saturday, meaning acceptable conditions but some sensitive people may wish to limit outdoor exposure, according to AirNow.gov, a government-run air-quality monitoring website.

One major improvement Saturday morning: The sky was visible and much of the smoke that blanketed Delaware was gone. The conditions represent a stark contrast from Wednesday, when much of the state reported an air quality index above 200, which is categorized as “very unhealthy” and officials recommended residents stay indoors as much as possible and wear masks outside.

When did air quality start to improve?

Most parts of Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey began seeing air quality index numbers drop throughout Thursday night into Friday. However, through Friday, Delaware and Pennsylvania were still under a Code Orange air quality alert, and New Jersey issued an Air Quality Action Day statewide.