Three major Hungarian cities have dangerously poor air quality, in part due to smog.
As reported by Index, on Sunday, Debrecen’s mayor ordered a high smog alert as the concentration of particulate matter has reached abnormal levels for two consecutive days in the city.
In a public announcement, Mayor László Papp asked Debrecen residents to avoid the use of cars, especially diesel ones, and instead travel by public transport, bicycles, and walking. He also encouraged people to heat their homes using gas rather than highly polluting solid fuels such as wood and coal.
Due to the smog alert, it is prohibited to burn garden waste in the open. Along with elderly and young residents, people with respiratory diseases are also encouraged to stay indoors.
Despite air quality improving over the last few days, the latest data shows that some parts of the country are still suffering from high levels of pollution.
In addition to Debrecen and nearby Nyíregyháza, 14 other settlements currently have very poor air quality (Budapest, Hernádszurdok, Kazincbarcika, Kecskemét, Miskolc, Oszlár, Putnok, Sajószentpéter, Salgótarján, Százhalombatta, Szeged, Szolnok, Tököl, and Vác), as communicated by the National Centre of Public Health.
In the settlements mentioned, the National Centre of Public Health does not advise people to do physical activity, especially elderly people and children. People with heart-related issues should also take greater caution.
We recently reported that a government official claimed that Hungary is facing high levels of pollution as people are burning a lot of household waste. Greenpeace protested plastic pollution with lifesize whales in Budapest.