Day: June 6, 2023💾

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Air quality levels in parts of the U.S. plunge as Canada wildfires rage

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Air quality levels in parts of the U.S. plunge as Canada wildfires rage

Millions of people in the eastern United States faced unhealthy air quality conditions on Tuesday, as smoke from wildfires in eastern Canada wafts over much of the country.

An air quality advisory was in effect for several regions of New York state on Tuesday. Air monitoring stations on Tuesday afternoon in some parts of New York City showed measures considered unhealthy for anyone.

It marked the second day that hazy skies across a wide swath of the country. Smoke blanketed the landscape from the Ohio Valley to as far south as the Carolinas on Monday. Air quality advisories were in effect Monday in southeastern Minnesota and parts of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, as well as in more than 60 counties in Wisconsin on Monday.
Map: Hewitt State Forest
Thematic Map: Major State Touring Routes

Canadian wildfires bring air quality alert, lower temperatures to Upstate NY – syracuse.com

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Canadian wildfires bring air quality alert, lower temperatures to Upstate NY – syracuse.com

Syracuse, N.Y. -- Wildfires in Quebec could make it hard to some people to breathe today in most of Upstate New York.

The state has issued an air quality alert for virtually all of Upstate through 11:59 p.m. today. The alert is for fine particulates that can cause eye and nose irritation, and can burrow deep into the lungs, causing shortness of breath in people prone to breathing problems.

People with heart or lung conditions should avoid strenuous activity outdoors and stay indoors, the state health department said.

More than 10,000 coastal Quebec residents were evacuated over the weekend as the fires raged. Wildfires have burned across Canada since last month, from the western provinces to the Atlantic maritime province of Nova Scotia, destroying about 10,000 square miles of forest and grassland.

Why Tesla cars get totaled so easily – Autoblog

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Why Tesla cars get totaled so easily – Autoblog

Crash your shiny new Tesla?

You may be in for a surprise when you get an estimate from your insurance company about getting it fixed.

Insurers are increasingly writing off — or "totaling" — a Tesla even after light damage because of their complexity and cost for repairs, according to the market-watchers at Kelley Blue Book.

Because there are so many tech features like sensors and cameras in the car — on top of highly-specific parts that can only be fixed by Tesla or one of its approved body shops — it's often cheaper to simply declare the whole vehicle destroyed and send it to the scrapyard instead of getting it back in working order.

Luckily, many elements of an electric car's drivetrain can be salvaged. In some cases, parts might find themself powering a classic conversion by a small handful of enthusiasts making some of the most famous cars ever made run on electricity.

To make matters even more complicated, Tesla's new "structural" battery packs — those that are integrated with the car's body — have "zero repairability," according to manufacturing expert Sandy Munro.

"A Tesla structural battery pack is going straight to the grinder," Munro, who's known for his vehicle teardowns, told Reuters earlier this year.

A study by two major salvage companies found that of the over 120 Model Ys declared totaled, "a vast majority" had less than 10,000-lifetime miles, Reuters reported at the time.

Tesla is acutely aware of the high insurance costs of its vehicles, with CEO Elon Musk in January saying they were "unreasonably high." He also noted that the company had implemented design changes, specifically in the bumper, to make some repairs easier and was working to ensure spare parts availability.
Thematic Map: Electric Buildings in the Capital Region
Thematic Map: Fifty Least Densely Populated Municipalities in NY State