Smoke drifting south from massive Canadian wildfires blanketed New York City this week, transforming the skyline into an eerie orange landscape and prompting officials to urge residents to remain indoors as hazardous air quality gripped the region.

A dramatic time-lapse recorded Wednesday captured the rapid change, showing bright blue skies gradually fading into a yellow haze as thick smoke spread across the metropolitan area from the fires burning in Canada.

By sunset, live footage from EarthCam revealed the city’s skyline glowing with an unsettling pale orange tint as the smoke continued to thicken overhead.

The smoky conditions persisted into Thursday, leading the National Weather Service to issue an Air Quality Alert covering New York City.

Air quality readings remained in the unhealthy range, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) fluctuating between 151 and 200 as authorities encouraged residents to avoid spending time outdoors whenever possible.

“[The] combination of dangerous heat and unhealthy air is a serious threat to New Yorkers’ health,” Mayor Zohran Mamdani said on X.

“If you can, stay somewhere cool with air conditioning, limit your time outdoors, drink plenty of water, and check on your neighbors — especially older New Yorkers and anyone with a health condition.”

To help protect residents from the smoky conditions, city officials are distributing free KN95 masks at neighborhood libraries and police precincts.

Health officials warned that while the polluted air poses risks for everyone, it is particularly dangerous for people with respiratory conditions such as asthma and other breathing disorders.

The air quality concerns are being intensified by an ongoing heat advisory affecting the city.

As a result, New York City has extended the operating hours of its cooling centers through Thursday, while residents enrolled in the Notify NYC system will continue receiving alerts about changing weather and air quality conditions.