Orange Skies in San Francisco: Here's why the sky turned orange on Sept 9

On September 9, many residents across Northern California took to Twitter to share the pictures of orange skies. Twitter users posted pictures and videos of the orange sky and reported that the sky had turned orange in the early hours of dawn. The Northern California residents were in utter shock and unable to understand the reason behind the orange skies in San Francisco and other parts of the region. A report on CBS local later explained that an outbreak of wildfires across Northern California had left a massive layer of smoke draped over the San Francisco Bay Area. This, in turn, had turned the sky orange on early Wednesday. Read on to know more.

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Orange Skies in San Francisco

Why is San Francisco sky orange?

The CBS report further mentioned that more than 2 million acres of forest have burned so far in a series of wildfires in California. The Bear and Creek fires are currently raging to the east of the San Francisco Bay Area. Moreover, the executive officer of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, Jack Broadbent, stated that the Labor Day weekend heatwave, combined with tailpipe exhaust and the lingering wildfire smoke, had made the air quality in the area very unhealthy.

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The Air District in the area had issued a Spare the Air alert for the residents which was extended through at least Friday, September 11. This had extended the record to 25 straight days of such alerts in the area. Reportedly the previous record was 16 days in 2018, which was when the Camp Fire had torn through Butte County. Officials in the district urged all of its residents to drive less and stay indoors in order to protect their health during the dangerous smoggy and smoky days. 

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San Francisco air quality continues to worsen

In addition to the district administration, the National Weather Service also took note of the incidence and further revealed that residents could not expect any immediate relief as the orange skies in San Francisco were here to stay. NWS Sacramento took to its Twitter handle on September 9 and shared the news that the smoke and haze was here to linger around the Bay Area. The wildfires in California are still raging. The NWS forecast has also mentioned that the suspended smoke will be descending closer to the surface which could lead to darker skies and worsening air quality in the upcoming days.

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Orange skies in San Francisco: How did the Mayor react?

San Francisco Mayor London Breed took to social media immediately after the San Francisco air quality worsened to calm any anxiety. Breed stated, “I know people are concerned by the orange sky we all woke up to this morning,” she tweeted. “The cause is a combination of fog and smoke from wildfires up and down the West Coast.” The Oakland Zoo authorities promptly announced that it was closing for the day due to the smoke on their Instagram.

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San Francisco pictures: This is what San Francisco looks like right now

Source: Zneha @mithrilmaker (Twitter)

Source: @MayaMedia7 (Twitter)

Source: @COLEADAMDAVIS (Twitter)