Respirator Masks Made Available as Gifford fire Affects Air Quality on the Central Coast
Jarrod Zinn
BUELLTON, Calif. – With the Gifford Fire churning through the Los Padres National Forest, air quality has become a top concern for people throughout Santa Barbara county.
There’s an opportunity for folks to get n-95 masks.
The Hitching Post 2 in Buellton is one of two places Direct Relief is handing out masks, as smoke from the wildfire is spreading across the county.
The Gifford Fire started near highway 166 and is now pushing south and to the east, releasing plenty of smoke and particulates into the air.
“We have an air quality alert that is in effect for the Cuyama area and an air quality watch that is in effect for the rest of Santa Barbara County,” says Lyz Bantilan, spokesperson for the Air Pollution Control District of Santa Barbara county.
In Santa Maria and further north, the air may not look as bad as it has during other wildfires, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t any smoke drifting in that direction.
“Air quality, even miles away from the fire, can really affect community members, particularly elderly, children, people with respiratory issues like asthma, as well as workers who are outside,” says Alexandra Kelleher, senior program manager of emergency response for Direct Relief.
A dark trail of smoke has been seen amid the clouds before it concentrates into the valleys, and residents in the Santa Barbara area have been dealing with smoke and ash.
“I did notice over the weekend, the plume at various points over the weekend did seem to be sort of wrapping around the county,” says Bantilan.
Those who are sensitive to unhealthy air quality may benefit from using n-95 respirator masks, and these are being handed out for free today and tomorrow by Direct Relief.
“As we have had a lot of experience with masks from COVID all the way until now, we chose these N95 respirator masks because they have the full seal around and they’re really able to protect from the irritants that are in the air,” says Kelleher.
Distributions for the free n-95 respirator masks are located at Direct Relief’s main office on Wallace Becknell Road in Santa Barbara and at The Hitching Post 2 on Highway 246 in Buellton.
If you missed them Monday, they’ll be handed out from noon to five pm on Tuesday.
In addition to these sites, Direct Relief has hand delivered masks and air purifiers to various evacuation centers and emergency facilities.
Air quality is expected to remain in the yellow zone for Cuyama and surrounding areas for the next few days.
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