Following a clear-skied Fourth of July, San Antonio’s air quality took a noticeable dip Friday heading into a weekend that could get severe storms heading into the Central Texas area.
While San Antonio’s ozone levels remained “good” by state standards, the region was showing to be in the “moderate” range of air pollutants on the Air Quality Index on Friday, with higher levels of particulate matter in the air than any other days this past week.
Particulate matter — also known as particle pollution — is a mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets in the air. It can include dust, dirt, soot, smoke, acids, organic chemicals, metals, allergens and more, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Fireworks, such as those commonly used on the Fourth of July, are known to add particulate matter into the air, making air quality in heavily populated areas noticeably worse for several days after big holidays.
When the area is experiencing moderate air pollution levels, sensitive groups like infants, the elderly or those with chronic respiratory illnesses should consider remaining indoors.
Air quality forecasts heading into the weekend showed San Antonio was likely to remain in the moderate zone through Saturday, with particulate matter largely dissipating by Sunday. Rain, however, is expected to move into the San Antonio area Sunday to early Monday as Hurricane Beryl makes landfall in Texas.
It’s still too early to predict how much rain the hurricane will bring to Central Texas, said National Weather Service meteorologist Emily Heller.
“There’s still a pretty high degree of uncertainty,” she said.
Beryl made landfall with parts of Southern Mexico Friday morning as a Category 2 hurricane with sustained winds of up to 110 miles per hour. The latest models of the storm’s path predict Beryl will move through Texas on Sunday or Monday, although forecasters are unsure if it will arrive at the Texas coastline as a hurricane or as a tropical storm.
