Mexican, Central American fires smoke up U.S. states

Forest fires burn in Mexico

May 13, 1998
Web posted at: 3:52 p.m. EDT (1952 GMT)

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- Smoke and air pollution from fires in Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala is drifting across much of the U.S. Southeast, prompting Texas officials to issue a health warning to residents throughout much of south Texas.

The Texas warning was the first related to fire pollutants in the state in nearly 30 years. It will be in effect through at least Friday afternoon.

Satellite imagery for the past two weeks has shown the smoke plumes spread from Mexico into Texas and southern California, then into the Gulf of Mexico over the last four days. The latest images show the most intense smog outside Mexico affecting the Florida Panhandle, southwestern Georgia and the Louisiana coast.

Weather patterns are expected to bring it back to Texas this week. Texas health officials advised people, especially children, who live within 100 miles of the Texas-Mexico border to avoid outside activity and to avoid prolonged physical activity indoors.

The elderly and those with respiratory and heart diseases were urged to avoid all physical exertion that would increase their breathing rate.

Residents also were urged to use air conditioning if they had it available and those who work outside were urged not to fully exert themselves and to breathe through their noses.

Smoke in Miami

Mexican officials have not sought U.S. help in fighting the fires and have not given an estimate as to when the fires could be contained, Texas officials said.

There have been 9,649 forest fires in Mexico this year, 87 percent more than at this point last year. As of Monday, 247 fires were still burning and more than 600,000 acres had been affected, according to official statistics.

Officials have blamed this year's raging fires on an El Nino-triggered drought, record-high temperatures across the country and the longtime Mexican practice of burning crops to clear land for agriculture.

Honduras has suffered about 1,500 fires this year, which have destroyed more than 740,000 acres, and El Salvadoran officials announced Tuesday they will ask for U.S. help in fighting their forest fires.

Copyright 1998   The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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• Strong rains fall on fire-ravaged Amazon state - March 31, 1998
• U.N. team assesses Amazon fires - March 31, 1998
• Brazil to send helicopters to battle Amazon fires - March 14, 1998

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