Cache Valley residents feeling sick after nearby fires

By Anna Tuckett

Cache Valley residents continue to feel the effects of the smoke after the recent Utah and Idaho fires.

People with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma "have a hard time when there’s smoke or pollution trapped in the valley,” said Alice King, an advanced emergency medical technician for Franklin County Ambulance, located in Preston, Idaho.

King said she noticed the number of respiratory-related calls rising similarly to those received in winter, when toxic inversions are more common.

Lee's pharmacist Jacob Nelson has seen an increase in inhaler prescriptions.

“We’ve seen a lot of Ventolin, which is a rescue inhaler so it’s fast-acting. That one's just been going like crazy,” Nelson said. “People feel the heavy chest tightness or they can’t breathe and it helps open their airways up."

Nelson said the smoke has caused people's allergies to flare up as well, causing an increase in allergy medication purchases.

Few medications are available for reducing respiratory inflammation without a prescription. 

“Bronkaid is probably the closest thing to an over-the-counter product we have that will help with opening the airways in the lungs,” Nelson said.

According to Utah and Idaho fire information, there are no current fires near the Utah-Idaho border