KN95

• Canada’s seemingly endless wildfires in 2023 introduced millions of people across North America to the health hazards of wildfire smoke.
• While Western states have contended with smoky fire seasons for years, the air quality alerts across the U.S. Midwest and Northeast this summer reached levels never seen there before.
• The smoke left the air so unhealthy in Philadelphia on June 7, 2023, that the Phillies-Detroit Tigers Major League Baseball game was postponed.

Global warming means more fires

• But wildfires’ contribution to air pollution is increasing again, resulting in flat or rising levels of air pollution in much of the country.
• Climate models predicted this reality as global temperatures rise.
• Computer simulations of the future in a warming climate show more smoky days, higher smoke concentrations, larger burned areas and higher emissions – which further fuel climate change.

Preparing for smoky days

• Think of smoke waves like heat waves: They’re easier to face if you’re prepared and know they’re coming.
• That means paying attention to forecasts and having face masks, air monitors and clean-air shelters available.
• Living with wildfire smoke may mean using air filtration devices, wearing N95 or KN95 masks on bad air days, modifying outdoor commuting patterns and activity schedules and changing household ventilation choices.

What schools and communities can do

• Schools can start with setting a threshold for canceling outdoor activities and making sure staff are ready to meet the needs of kids with asthma.
• Communities will also need contingency plans for festivals and recreation venues, as well as rules for business to protect outdoor workers.

Improving smoke monitoring and forecasting

• The U.S. has an extensive air quality monitoring and forecasting system to help provide some early warning.
• It uses ground-based air quality monitors, satellite remote sensing systems to detect smoke and fires and computer systems that tie observations together with wind, chemistry and weather.
• This is especially true when smoke blows in from fires far away, or when rapidly changing smoke emission rates and complex wind patterns lead to conflicting forecasts and advisories.


Maintaining a strong air quality monitoring network is also important. State and local government agencies have reduced the number of ground monitors by about 10% from its peak in 2001. Smoke estimates from satellites and low-cost portable sensors can help, but they work best when they can be cross-calibrated to a well-maintained network of high-accuracy monitors.

We still have a lot to learn

• A 2023 Government Accountability Office report called for better coordination to help target resources where they can be most effective.
• Next-generation tools need to be both clear and resilient to the compound hazards that develop when smoke hits simultaneously with other challenges, such as extreme heat.
• Gregory Carmichael receives funding from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

• SHENZHEN, China, March 1, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Creality, a global pioneer in 3D printing, has been providing support to assist those impacted by the recent earthquakes in Turkey.
• Together with Genix, a leading printing solutions provider and Creality's major distributor in Turkey, Creality has donated about 1500 emergency supply kits including tents and blankets to the affected regions through Ahbap Association, a non-governmental organization founded by the Turkish musician and philanthropist Haluk Levent.
• All the supplies were sent to Aahbap's community recovery warehouse in Osmaniye in southern Turkey by February 26, and will be distributed to the surrounding villages as requested by Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD).
• Creality has been proactive in charitable contributions for years and established the Creality Charity Fund in 2020.

• COVID-19 and the supply chain crisis are tenacious, maintaining their vice-like grip on the economy, and everyone is still paying the price — literally.
• It's a vicious cycle of supply, demand, and the lack of resources to keep up.
• KN95 and N95 disposable masks and other standard PPE in the medical industry became a hot commodity among the general population.
• Before the pandemic, dental practices spent an average of 5.5% to 6.0% of their revenue on dental supplies.

• Given the supply chain challenges that faced many industries in 2022, Bona Fide Masks is in an advantageous position, given its unmatched business model.
• By doing so, the company will always deliver authentic, high-quality KN95, N95 and other masks to the public.
• Bona Fide Masks is also proud to become an authorized distributor for Celltrion Diatrust COVID at-home test kits.
• Bona Fide Masks will continue to offer 15% off to its customers through January 20, using the promo code: "WINTER15".