GROVELAND, Calif. — The giant wildfire burning at the edge of Yosemite National Park has not only destroyed buildings and threatened water supplies, electricity and sequoias, it has also unleashed a smoky haze that has worsened air quality more than 100 miles away in Nevada.
The plume from the Rim Fire in California triggered emergency warnings in the Reno and Carson City area. Schoolchildren were kept inside for the second time in a week, people went to hospitals complaining of eye and throat irritation and officials urged people to avoid all physical activity outdoors.
“It’s five hours away,” said 22-year-old bartender Renee Dishman in disbelief after learning that the source of the haze was more than 150 miles away. “I can’t run. I can’t breathe. It makes me sneeze.”
The Rim Fire, so far, has burned through 280 square miles, destroyed 23 structures and threatened water supplies, hydroelectric power and giant sequoias.
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