Multnomah County
Multnomah County, which houses Oregon’s biggest city, Portland, warned its residents on Monday not to go outside due to hazardous air quality amid the wildfires raging across the West Coast.
“NO ONE should be outside,” the county’s official Twitter account wrote Monday, asking employers and employees not to work outside.
Hazardous air from #oregonwildfires2020 across Portland metro today. NO ONE should be outside. Employers, workers, please do not work outside today. If absolutely necessary, make sure fit w/ N95, take breaks, drink water. https://t.co/Ipx6aUsAvj
— Multnomah County, OR (@multco) September 14, 2020
Air quality is considered unhealthy when it reaches 151 on the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality’s index.
As of Monday morning, the air quality in Portland was rated 463: hazardous.
Many businesses and facilities in Portland opted to close up shop Monday to protect their employees after thick clouds of smoke from nearby wildfires have damaged the air quality in Oregon for several days. Forbes
