Why Air Quality Got Dramatically Worse in SF Yesterday

Tuesday was projected to be a little bit of a reprieve in the city of San Francisco and along the Peninsula from the bad air quality due to the fires. But then the wind shifted and things got worse.

Please note the above photo illustration was taken in 2018 around the time of the Camp Fire and is for illustration purposes only. We are working to securing rights to use photographs from the current 2020 situation.

The SF Gate reports that the winds shifted yesterday morning. Instead of carrying smoke from Santa Cruz down the coast toward Monterey, the winds shifted and brought smoke up the Peninsula and to San Francisco.

According to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, SF and Redwood City both hit “unhealthy” levels of air quality by 11am.

Read more: SF Gate | AirNow | PurpleAir | Bay Area Air Quality Management District | Hour by Hour Air Quality

Fortunately the air quality improved in the afternoon when the ocean breeze picked up, but then it pushed the smoke east, choking the East Bay instead.

The good news is that for most of the Bay Area (other than Santa Cruz, where the air remains “Very Healthy”) the air quality as of Wednesday morning was Good to Moderate.