PHILADELPHIA—The Philadelphia Department of Public Health has declared that residents living in the area of the Glenwood Avenue brush fire can return to their normal routines. The fire caused only a slight rise in the amount of particulate matter, or PM 2.5, before being brought under control. No other criteria pollutants or toxic compounds were identified at the site of the fire at levels that would pose a threat to human health.

Health Department inspectors collected an air sample in the immediate vicinity of the fire before it was brought under control. This sample was run through the Air Management laboratory’s GC-MS, or gas chromatography–mass spectrometer. The results of that test showed that no toxic compounds were identified in quantities that would threaten human health.

The Health Department’s Breathe Philly air quality monitoring network is available 24/7 and provides near-real-time information on air quality from 76 monitors located throughout Philadelphia.