London Issues Health Warning as Air Pollution from Saharan Sand Hits England

First it was Beijing issuing health warnings because of their high levels of air pollution. Then came Paris a few weeks ago. Now, London has issued a public health warning because strong winds and dust storms have brought Saharan sands into England.

The Met Office, UK's National Weather Service, predicted the air pollution levels to reach 10, which is the highest, on Tuesday and Wednesday. The combination of England's air pollution and the Saharan sand prompted Public Health England to issue a smog alert and health warning. All people with heart or lung problems were suggested to avoid strenuous exercise and reduce their presence outdoors.

The warning said that the high levels of air pollution are expected to last until the weekend. However, this occurrence is not unusual, says Paul Hutcheon of the Met Office. He mentioned that this has the potential to occur several times a year. Dust storms in the Sahara and southerly winds relocate the dust, where it eventually ends up in southern England.

This morning, cars in London had a thin layer of dust on their surfaces as the smog worsened from the overnight rain showers that washed up the dust and brought it to the ground. The 40-plus mile per hour winds in the northwest part of the Sahara desert picked up the dust high into the atmosphere and pushed it across north Africa and the Mediterranean. Then, the heavy rainfall brought the particles down from atmosphere, acording to a UK weather report.

This smog warning is not a good sign, especially after the recent incidents in Beijing and Paris. Those instances were so bad that the cities offered free public transportation to avoid more cars polluting the atmosphere. Additionally, the World Health Organization reported last week that air pollution was responsible for seven million deaths worldwide in 2012. Stroke and heart disease were two of the most common diseases that resulted from high levels of air pollution.

Public Health England announced today that, "While most people will not be affected by short term peaks in air pollution, some individuals, particularly vulnerable groups such as those with existing heart or lung conditions, may experience increased symptoms," according to the UK government website.

Clean air campaigners seek to warn about the risks of air pollution and provide precautionary measures for people to avoid its adverse effects. They claim that the government isn't doing a good enough job of that. To read more about the London smog levels and public health warning, visit this Guardian news article.