Protect Yourself
Practical steps on smoky days
Simple actions, based on Canadian public health guidance.
Check the AQHI
Look up your local Air Quality Health Index and any special air quality statements before planning your day.
Adapt outdoor exertion
On smoky days, reduce or reschedule strenuous outdoor activity — especially if you are at higher risk or have symptoms.
Create cleaner indoor air
Keep smoke out when it's safe to do so, use a portable HEPA air cleaner and a suitable furnace/HVAC filter, and avoid indoor particle sources.
N95 respirators
A well-fitted N95 can reduce the fine particles you breathe in. It does not protect against gases, and it must seal well to work.
Follow official advice
Health Canada, your provincial health authority and local officials give the most current guidance. Seek medical care if you have trouble breathing or chest pain.
Bilingual blurb by Samarth Yandhe
Protecting Indoor Air
When wildfire smoke is present, reducing the amount of outdoor air entering a building can help lower indoor smoke exposure. Air filtration can also help remove fine particles from indoor air. These measures are particularly important during periods when outdoor air quality is poor. (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], 2024)Download
One-page safety checklist
- ☐Check the AQHI for my area every day during wildfire season.
- ☐Know my risk: am I, or is someone I live with, in an at-risk group?
- ☐Reduce or reschedule strenuous outdoor activity when air quality is poor.
- ☐Keep windows and doors closed when smoky, if it is not too hot to be safe.
- ☐Run a portable HEPA air cleaner in the room where I spend the most time.
- ☐Use a suitable higher-efficiency HVAC filter, if my system allows it.
- ☐Avoid indoor particle sources: candles, incense, smoking, frying.
- ☐Have well-fitted N95 respirators ready (they do not filter gases).
- ☐Keep medications and an emergency kit ready; know my evacuation plan.
- ☐Check in on family, friends and neighbours who may be at higher risk.
- ☐Seek medical help for difficulty breathing, chest pain or severe symptoms.