ST. PAUL (AP) — The thick haze caused by smoke from more than 100 Canadian wildfires is causing unhealthy air quality conditions across a large part of Minnesota.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency reports that the air quality is rated unhealthy for everyone from a large part of northwestern Minnesota, including Detroit Lakes, extending down to Brainerd and St. Cloud toward the Twin Cities suburbs.

An even larger swath is rated unhealthy for sensitive groups. It runs from near Lake of the Woods and Fargo-Moorhead, through Brainerd and the Twin Cities metro area, to Rochester and the Iowa border. The MPCA says people in that area with lung or heart disease, older adults, children, and people participating in activities that require heavy or extended exertion may experience adverse health effects.

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