His son died of asthma. Now children learn to avoid smoky skies in their name

Every day, nine-year-old Roland Latimer checks the air quality in Gold River, BC, before going outside. He has asthma and wears puffers to help him breathe.

When the air quality is poor, such as wildfire smoke is present, they are forced to stay indoors.

there is forest fire smoke dangerous for everyone‘s health, but for Roland it could trigger dangerous asthma attacks. Even though it is for his safety, he still finds it frustrating to be stuck inside.

“I feel like I’m trapped,” he said. what on earth Host Laura Lynch.

Access to local security information – with four air quality monitors Now in the small village on Vancouver Island where he lives – part of the legacy of a BC boy who died of an asthma attack during wildfire season in July 2023.

Nine-year-old Carter Vigh was also at a birthday party at a water park that day when his parents said they couldn’t smell smoke. He recalls that the air quality health index reading was “low risk”, but it was based on an air quality monitor about 100 kilometers from his home in 100 Mile House, BC.

His mother, Amber Vigh, wanted to turn that tragedy into an opportunity to help others, so the family partnered with BC Lung Foundation to create Carter’s project,

“We need to take the time and learn about air quality and how important it is,” he said.

air quality education

Wildfire smoke can be dangerous, even when we can’t see or smell it.

It contains gases and tiny particles, known as PM2.5, which travel deep into the lungs and cause inflammation. For at-risk groups, such as senior citizens, young children and people with chronic health conditions such as asthma or heart disease, it is more dangerous.

According to a study published last month, Carter died in 2023, amid Canada’s record-breaking wildfire season that caused an estimated 5,400 serious deaths and 82,100 premature deaths worldwide. peer-reviewed journal Nature,

But Vigh believes that people have become careless when it comes to air quality.

“We have decided that we now have wildfire season and it is normal that there will be smoke for a few months.”

Now, the BC Lung Foundation and The Carter Project have provided 20 outdoor and 200 indoor air quality monitors to schools and communities, including 100 miles home, river of gold And Dawson CreekThey’re also going to classes – like Roland Latimer – to teach people about the importance of air quality so they can keep themselves safe.

Vigh worries that if he had not taken the initiative, no one would have taken the initiative.

“We are going to be the change that brings this topic forward,” he said. “These things could happen on a larger scale if the government stepped in and helped us, but it’s quite rewarding to know that we’re making sure that’s happening.”

The BC government says it has invested more than $300 million in HVAC system upgrades to support improved air quality and ventilation projects in hundreds of schools across the province.

In a statement sent to CBC, B.C.’s Ministry of Education and Child Care said the science curriculum covers topics such as the respiratory system and the Earth’s atmosphere, which can be used to explore issues such as air quality and its impacts.

The ministry is working with the province’s climate action secretariat to develop resources to assist teachers in climate change lessons. But they are not considering reviewing or revising the curriculum.

‘Scientist in his own community’

Chris Lamm, president of the BC Lung Foundation, says most people take air for granted. He wants to work toward normalizing the conversation about air quality.

“Our goal with this project is to really empower people. Let people become scientists in their own community. Measure what’s in the air and give them a chance to take action,” Lamm said.

During BC Lung Foundation information sessions, they also show people how to make their own handmade air cleaners that filter out fine particles, a technology developed with the BC Center for Disease Control during the pandemic.

Lamm says air quality monitors and purifiers can save lives. He says his organization is dedicated to providing those schools with options, even if they have to go to one class at a time.

Lam believes that learning about air quality should be accessible and that it should happen in school, for example, whether it’s in a science class or in a workshop. He says students should know what air quality index numbers are, what changes in them, and how air quality can affect them.

“If we’re able to educate kids and make it really fun and accessible, it’ll really start to spread,” he said.

Look Carter’s Project leads community programs to educate about air quality:

What can be done

Melissa Lamm, a family physician and president of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, says discussions about the dangers of wildfire smoke must be paired with solutions or people will feel overwhelmed and anxious.

For example, when the air quality health index is higher than four, Lamm suggests turning on an air purifier and staying indoors or wearing a mask or face covering if you have to go outside.

“I think we need a better understanding generally, that we need to be more careful at lower levels of air pollution,” he said.

Lam pointed to an opinion article written by BC Center for Disease Control Doctors noted that although a lot of attention is paid to excessive concentrations of PM2.5 and smoky skies, there is greater damage at lower concentrations that often occur.

Lamm says chronic and repeated exposure to air pollution is a major concern because of the long-term effects it creates. She hopes there will be more education about the risks and how people can protect themselves.

“In Canada, because we’ve been exposed to more and more air pollution recently, we’re not as aware of it,” he said. ‘Carter’s project is an important way to raise awareness of this, especially among children and young families.’

‘He was a boy just like me’

Vigh says sharing your family’s painful story is an effective teaching tool because it makes the problem seem more real than a book or YouTube video.

“We’re telling the real-life story of what can happen if we’re not cautious and teaching people how to be cautious and protect themselves,” Vigh said.

She says students are happy to hear about Carter because he died so young.

Rowland said he was “sad and scared” when he heard about Carter’s death.

“He talks about Carter all the time and he tells people about him too,” Rowland’s mother, Tricia Latimer, told CBC.

“He says, ‘I didn’t know him, but he was a guy just like me.’ “He realizes how serious it is, and it could be him.”

Vigh says he is proud of the legacy left by his son and he is proud of Rowland for carrying the torch and helping spread Carter’s message. Vigh says Carter’s project gives him hope.

“When you lose a child, a lot of pieces of your heart are broken and missing, but this project has helped put my heart back together.”