The air quality remains very unfavorable in 17 cities on the island, especially Los Realejos, La Orotava and Arafo, due to the forest fires that have affected Tenerife since last Tuesday. The Emergency and Safety Coordination Center (Cecoes) 112 recalled in a statement that smoke from forest fires is composed of a mixture of gases and small particles released by the burning of vegetation and other materials.
Specifically, the air quality in the northern part of the island is very unfavorable, except for Los Realejos and La Orotava, El Sauzal, La Matanza de Acentejo, La Victoria de Acentejo, Santa Úrsula, Puerto de la Cruz, Buenavista del Norte, Los Silos, Garachico, Icod de los Vinos, La Guancha and San Juan de la Rambla. In the south, Candelaria and Guimar are of poor quality, with the exception of Arafo.
The Canary Islands 1-1-2 Emergency and Safety Coordination Center (CECOES 1-1-2) explained that sensitive groups are people with pre-existing respiratory or heart conditions such as asthma, chronic bronchitis and emphysema, children , pregnant women and the elderly, people who engage in strenuous physical activity, and people with reduced mobility.
Possible symptoms are cough, irritation of eyes, nose, or throat; shortness of breath, chest discomfort, palpitations, fatigue; worsening symptoms in people with previous respiratory or heart problems.
In addition, Cecoes advises affected people to avoid staying outdoors for strenuous or prolonged physical activity, close doors and windows, and if air-conditioning is available, put it on recirculation mode and equipped with a clean filter, FFP2 masks are recommended outdoors to avoid respiratory problems and Protect eyes as much as possible, wash eyes if necessary and follow instructions from Civil Defense.