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As big of a story as the opening of Norfolk’s first-in-the-state light rail line was this weekend, it is another event which kept riders such as myself away from it: the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge fire. According to this story, the fire started August 4 and has grown to be the largest since 1974, covering almost 6,000 acres of the 112,000 acre refuge.

The fire has made going outside difficult as the smoke has blanketed the area. We were under a code orange air quality alert:

Code orange means individuals with respiratory or heart problems, older adults and children should reduce prolonged or heavy outdoor exertion, according to the National Weather Service.

The winds are supposed to keep most of the smoke to the south of us today.

As I do every morning, I went outside to get my newspaper off the porch and for sure, it is better than it has been. The last few days have not been fun with the higher, code red alerts. I’ve stayed inside – and been fairly productive in the process