Numerous reports by residents across the United States in late December and early January have highlighted unusual fog occurrences. The fog often coincided with immediate adverse health symptoms, including coughing, sore throats, and irritated eyes, the Daily Mail reported.
One Reddit user posted to the r/Conspiracy subreddit, sharing their experience with the mysterious fog covering their community.
"I work outside and ever since I've breathed that fog in," they said, "for days I swear I've had weird health issues going on and unexplainable anxiety symptoms."
The original poster wrote that the fog across the country was odd because it seemed manmade. "Remember the fog from last year they were saying was forest fires?" they said. "I'll bet that same chemical smelling fog that was everywhere in the summer time is the same stuff they're spraying everywhere now."
In the comment section, the OP said they thought a fog in the Detroit area smelled like burning plastic.
Paying attention to details and events that seem to be out of the ordinary, such as detecting a gas leak at home, can potentially save lives. In other cases, however, the cause may be perfectly explainable.
Another user replied to the OP: "Yet the fog here in rural Michigan smelled of nothing. … The smell you have in Detroit is pollution that is released into the air that was trapped by the fog allowing you to smell the truth of the level of pollution in your area."
Late last year, The Cool Down reported on significant federal funding devoted to cleaning up ports throughout the country, including in Michigan. However, the metro Detroit area is notorious for its high pollution levels, particularly around the ports. One local said that you could even write your name in the soot that covers the surrounding port neighborhood, per TCD.
The smells associated with heavy pollution in populated metropolitan areas can remain trapped under dense fog. Fog works almost like a heavy blanket, preventing odors and pollutants from dissipating, leading to lower air quality. Increased amounts of particulate matter can irritate the lungs, causing inflammation, narrow air passages, and difficulty breathing.
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All the time 💯 According to a Journal of Thoracic Disease article, fog can increase air humidity and decrease oxygen levels. This may explain increased respiratory discomfort. Feeling like you can't breathe or that it's hard to do so can lead to feelings of anxiety, Real Life Counseling found.
As to the source of the mysterious fog, one user commented: "There were massive fires burning across from NYC during that period so I could believe the correlation."
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