Darwin smog sticking around — but not for long

THE air quality in Darwin is nearly twice as bad as it was yesterday, when it was worse than in every other capital city in Australia

Darwin overlooking Tipperary Waters with ongoing smog.

DARWINITES can expect the smoke to hang around today — but from tomorrow, weather experts say it should start to disperse.

Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Angeline Prasad told ABC Darwin this morning the haze was sitting close to the surface in the Greater Darwin area.

“Because it has been really cool over night, the smoke has been trapped close to the surface,” she said.

“The winds have eased so it won’t be as windy as it was earlier this week.

“The nights will be cool over the next few days.”

Yesterday morning, the air quality in Darwin was worse than in every other capital city in Australia, confirms official figures.

According to the AirRater app the PM2.5 — or amount of small particles in the air — in Darwin shortly after 9.10am was 36. This morning at 7am it was PM77.

In Sydney yesterday it was PM36, and in Melbourne it was just PM2 at the time.

It follows on from last week when Darwin was gripped by both smoke and fog.

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One rural Darwin resident, who asked not to be named, blamed the poor weather on the burning.

“There been fire burning since the beginning of June,” he said.

“I now have asthma every night I go to bed I have to wear a mask.

“Two months of burning just seems inefficient.”

Earlier this week, NT health experts urged people in the Greater Darwin area with hay fever, asthma or other respiratory conditions to stay inside over the next few days with their windows and doors shut.