ASHLAND, Ore. – Despite the beautiful weather today, smoke could become an issue in the valley once more. So Rebuilding Together Rogue Valley created a new program called Smoke Busters to help seniors in Jackson county stay smoke safe.
The smoky haze is a tell-tale sign of another fire season. The smoke in the air can be harmful to everyone, but there are some groups that are more sensitive than others.
“Anybody who has a cardiac or respiratory barrier or congestive heart failure anything that makes breathing and heart rate more challenged is really going to be affected by the particulate matter,” Ashland Senior Center, Senior Services Director, Isleen Glatt said.
That’s where the Smoke Busters come in, it’s a new pilot program from Rebuilding Together Rogue Valley. A team sets out to help seniors in the Jackson county area get smoke season ready, but there are some guidelines
“They have to be low income and they have to be nonsmokers and then we go in and put an air purifier and advise to the type of room we’re trying to filter the air in,” Rebuilding Together Rogue Valley Executive Director, Howard Johnson said.
One of their first projects was with the Ashland Senior Center, the Smoke Busters came in to assess their community rooms, and put in a new air purifier.
“They actually bring in an air quality monitor and check our baseline of air, there are other things beside smoke that can affect air quality and then they check the doors and windows,” Glatt said. “If you purify the air but have all these cracks that doesn’t help.”
She says its extremely important that community rooms are treated, so seniors can still spend quality time, even when there’s not quality air.
“Being engaged in life is also really important, being able to socialize have activities that keep you thinking,” Glatt said.
If you’re interested in getting an assessment done by the Smoke Busters you can visit the Rebuilding Together Rogue Valley website at RBTRV.org.
© 2024 KOBI-TV NBC5. All rights reserved unless otherwise stated.