Detroit Has the 2nd Worst Air Quality in the World Today

If you feel funny outside and perhaps see some smoke, you're not imagining things. Detroit has the second worst air quality in the world today (June 27). It's not just Detroit, either. Nearly all of Michigan has poor air quality today, including Lasing, Grand Rapids, Flint and other cities.

The poor air quality is due to the Canadian wildfires. Specifically, Chicago as the No. 1 poorest air quality today (currently at an index of 193), and it's followed by Detroit (currently at an index of 160), according to iqair.com. The next U.S. city to make the list is Minneapolis, Minnesota, at No. 8. Note that this list only includes major U.S. cities, so as previously motioned, many smaller Michigan towns also have poor air quality right now. Find the current list of the cities with the poorest air qualities here.

One good bit of news is that the East Coast of the U.S., which experienced dangerous air quality from the Canadian wildfires earlier this month, is mostly clear right now. Still, some spots are in the yellow or "moderate" zone, which means the air quality is acceptable but could be risky for certain people with sensitivities.

"Mike's Weather Page" also released an image with a current look at wildfire smoke incoming from Canada. View the tweet below.

In Michigan, do we have any real risk of an earthquake? Everyone knows of the obvious places where you have to worry about experiencing an earthquake. But sometimes, there are less obvious spots, too.

A new study looks at the locations with the highest potential of earthquakes. A lot of them are in major cities. A few include Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Salt Lake City and Memphis. That's according to government research done by FEMA.

In case you were wondering, earthquakes are costly. That's not to shame the states that have the most earthquakes, of course. Hurricanes are costly, too. So, whether you live in California, where earthquakes are likely, or in other areas across America where hurricanes happen, chances are, your area is taking up funding to cover these disasters. As it turns out, southern California coastal counties and the Bay Area are the most costly when it comes to earthquake damage. "Los Angeles County with $2.68 billion in annualized losses is more than three times greater than the second highest county (Santa Clara, California)," the FEMA report states. "The counties containing the Seattle, Portland, Salt Lake, and Memphis metropolitan areas also have relatively high AELs."

Michigan ranks No. 37 and No. 46, respectively, out of the states for the report's "Ranking of States by Annualized Earthquake Loss and Annualized Earthquake Loss Ratios (AELR)." When it comes to Michigan's risk, an interactive map shows the area is at "Very Low" or "Lowest" risk for an earthquake, with the northern part of the state at the lowest risk.

Find the interactive map via CNN below and see where your area lands and your Michigan earthquake risk. You might be surprised by some of the areas that actually have a fairly high risk for activity. The map was "derived in part from a US Geological Survey study that created earthquake models to help inform municipalities and insurance companies about such hazards," according to CNN.

While you might think of a handful of cities who are in danger of earthquakes, and those are on the West Coast, there is earthquake activity all around. "Although most economic loss is concentrated along the West Coast, the distribution of relative earthquake risk, as measured by the AELR, is much broader and reinforces the fact that earthquakes are a national problem," FEMA says. "Relatively high earthquake loss ratios are throughout the western and central United States (states within the NMSZ) and in the Charleston, South Carolina, area."

You've heard of the Big Four, right? In metal music. Anyway, the Big 55 are the cities that experience the most earthquake activity. "Fifty-five metropolitan areas, led by the Los Angeles (including Los Angeles, Long Beach, and Anaheim) and San Francisco (including San Francisco, Oakland, and Berkeley) Bay areas, account for 85% of the total AEL," FEMA says.

This is an interactive map of the United States showing each area's risk for earthquakes. You might be surprised by some of the areas that actually have a pretty high risk for activity. Click the link below to go to the interactive map via CNN.

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/05/23/us/us-earthquake-risk-map-dg/index.html