Unhealthy Air Quality Alert for Seattle-Bellevue-Kent Valley: AQI Reaches 193
Areazine synthesizes this EPA air-quality advisory directly from EPA's official public data feed. See our methodology for full source attribution and refresh cadence.
On February 27, 2026, air quality in the Seattle-Bellevue-Kent Valley area reached an AQI of 193, categorized as Unhealthy primarily due to fine particulate matter (PM2.5).
What this EPA air-quality advisory tells you, and what most readers miss
This notice was issued by EPA on April 6, 2026 and geographically references Seattle-Bellevue-Kent Valley, WA. Its severity classification of "medium" signals how the issuing agency weighs the risk of harm if no action is taken - "critical" and "high" tier alerts typically carry direct consumer actions, while "medium" and "low" tend toward informational guidance or monitoring advisories. The category it belongs to - Air Quality - determines the informational context it sits in, and which agency or body is the authoritative source for updates.
Most readers skim a notice like this, check whether they are personally affected, and move on. The more useful lens is to verify its scope, source, and timestamp, then compare related notices without assuming that one record proves a broader trend.
Areazine pairs this record with the original agency URL so you can check the primary source before acting. Its related labels are air-quality, epa, aqi, Seattle-Bellevue-Kent Valley.
Current Air Quality
As of February 27, 2026, the Seattle-Bellevue-Kent Valley area in Washington is experiencing Unhealthy air quality. The primary pollutant of concern is fine particulate matter (PM2.5), which has reached an Air Quality Index (AQI) value of 193. Other measured pollutants include Ozone (O3) with an AQI of 31 (Good) and PM10 with an AQI of 7 (Good).
What This Means
An AQI in the "Unhealthy" range (151-200) indicates that the air is unhealthy for the general public. At this level, everyone may begin to experience health effects, and members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects.
Who Should Take Precautions
While the entire population may be affected, specific groups are at higher risk. These include people with heart or lung disease, older adults, children, and people of lower socioeconomic status.
What You Should Do
To protect your health, it is recommended to reduce prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors. While it is generally acceptable to be active outside, you should take more breaks and engage in less intense activities. Sensitive groups should avoid prolonged or heavy exertion and consider moving activities indoors or rescheduling them to a time when air quality improves.
Source
Data provided by EPA AirNow.
Original source: EPA Official Notice ↗
Related Air Quality
All Air Quality →Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about this EPA air-quality advisory.