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As an orange apocalyptic cloud of darkness and despair descended onto New York City Wednesday, Americans were understandably upset. And where did they point the finger of frustration?
To the north.
“EH!POCALYPSE NOW,” screamed a banner on the cover of the New York Post Thursday morning, playing homage to a joke from the 1999 South Park movie. “Canuck wildfires plunge NYC into eerie smoky hell. BLAME CANADA!”
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New York City had record-breaking terrible air quality yesterday afternoon due to the Canadian wildfire smoke, leading the world with an abysmal air quality index (AQI) rating of 342, according to IQAir — and the next city on the list wasn’t even close. Toronto also climbed up within the top five on that dire list yesterday, with an estimated score of 175 AQI.
As of Thursday morning, New York City still sat atop that list with an AQI rating of 184, and it may not see relief for days. Toronto, for its part, might hit levels NYC saw yesterday, as it braces for what might be the worst air quality levels it has ever seen.
The large masses of smoke are largely coming from out-of-control wildfires from Quebec’s interior and in Northern Ontario, prompting evacuation orders for tens of thousands affected by those areas in Canada. Despite being thousands of kilometres away, many cities in southern Ontario and the northeastern U.S. are being blanketed by a thick haze and odour, sparking public health advisories and cancellations at sporting and entertainment venues, as well as delays at airports.
Keep in mind though that wildfire smoke is no laughing matter, as the smoke is potentially very hazardous, even to healthy folks, and serves as an incredibly sober wake up call to the reality of climate change and the inaction of countries to address it head on. But people will inevitably find the humour in serious things.
New York Post wasn’t the only one blaming Canada — or referencing the South Park song — for its air quality issues as many others took online to berate their neighbours up north:
Some people made references to scenes in “Blade Runner 2049” and “Dune” after seeing images of the orangey and other-wordly looking smoke:
While Canada shouldn’t be blamed — again, it’s a sign of worsening climate change conditions — some Canadians took to social media to respond in the most Canadian way ... by saying “sorry!”