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Boston, MA
It's not your imagination, air quality in Boston is getting worse
Environment
A report from the American Lung Association shows that air quality has worsened in Boston, Worcester, and Providence.
Air quality in Boston is getting worse, according to a new report by the American Lung Association.
As part of its “State of the Air” 2025 report, the American Lung Association reported that 46% of Americans live in places with unhealthy levels of ozone or particle pollution. There are 25 million more people breathing what they call “unhealthy air” compared to last year’s report.
This is largely the result of extreme heat, drought, and wildfires, despite decades of successful efforts to reduce sources of air pollution. Eastern states were most recently impacted by a blanket of smoke from wildfires in Canada, which the report described as “unprecedented,” and this drove up levels of ozone and particle pollution.
The Boston–Worcester–Providence metro area was ranked the 61st worst for high ozone days out of 228 metropolitan areas, 114th worst for 24-hour particle pollution out of 225 metropolitan areas, and 110th worst for annual particle pollution out of 208 metropolitan areas.
Although all those levels are better than they were in the late 1990s, thanks in large part to the Clean Air Act, they have been on the rise since hitting lows a few years ago.
“Over the last decade, however, the findings of the report have added to the extensive evidence that a changing climate is making it harder to protect this hard-fought progress on air quality and human health,” the report said.
Suffolk County received a C grade for high ozone days and a B grade for 24-hour particle pollution.
Many of Suffolk County’s 768,425 residents fall into one of the American Lung Association’s at-risk populations: 121,787 are under 18 and 106,606 are 65 and over; 78,242 adults and 7,148 children have asthma; 31,030 have COPD, 362 have lung cancer, and 37,206 are affected by cardiovascular disease.
No Massachusetts counties earned “A” grades for either particle pollution or ozone grades. The full list of grades is below.
Particle pollution grades:
Berkshire: D
Bristol: C
Essex: C
Franklin: D
Hampden: D
Hampshire: C
Middlesex: B
Norfolk: B
Plymouth: C
Suffolk: B
Worcester: C
Ozone grades:
Barnstable: C
Berkshire: B
Bristol: D
Dukes: C
Essex: C
Franklin: B
Hampden: C
Hampshire: B
Middlesex: B
Norfolk: D
Plymouth: C
Suffolk: C
Worcester: B
Boston, MA
Canvas reportedly reaches deal with hackers for stolen data – Boston News, Weather, Sports | WHDH 7News
BOSTON (WHDH) – The maker of the online learning platform Canvas has reportedly reached a deal wit the hackers who took down the site last week to get their data back.
The company did not reveal what was given to the hackers in exchange for the return of more than 275 million users’ data, but said they confirmed the data was detroyed.
Canvas was down for several hours last week because of the cyberattack.
The hacking group said nearly 9,000 schools worldwide were impacted, including Harvard University.
They said they accessed billions of private messages and personal information.
(Copyright (c) 2026 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Investigators identified Tyler Brown of Boston as the man who allegedly opened fire on Memorial Drive in Cambridge, Massachusetts, leaving two victims with life-threatening injuries.
Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan said Brown fired 50 to 60 shots on the busy road shortly after 1 p.m. Monday.
Two male victims were hit in vehicles, Ryan said. They are in critical condition and fighting for their lives.
A Massachusetts State Police trooper and a civilian with a license to carry a firearm went toward the gunman and fired their weapons at him. Officers treated Brown at the scene, and he was brought to a Boston hospital, where he is in intensive care, according to the district attorney.
This video shared with NBC10 Boston appears to show a man opening fire at cars on Memorial Drive in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on Monday, May 11, 2026.
Authorities have, so far, shared limited information about the suspect.
“Mr. Brown is from Boston, and apparently was in the process of moving here. We understand that Mr. Brown was under the supervision of either the Massachusetts Probation Department or Department of Parole,” Ryan said.
She did not elaborate on why Brown may have been on probation or parole.
“We will address Mr. Brown’s criminal record, if any, at the arraignment,” she said.
Ryan added that she did not know enough about Brown’s condition to say whether he would be arraigned in court or in a hospital bed. The timing was also not clear.
He will face two counts of armed assault with intent to murder and firearms charges, and “a variety of other charges as we unfold what took place, exactly, and we have a chance to speak to the many, many people who were out there,” Ryan said.
Boston, MA
Portion of Storrow Drive, Soldiers Field Road will close nightly through August – The Boston Globe
An inbound stretch of Storrow Drive and Soldiers Field Road will be closed each night through August for tunnel repairs, officials announced.
Starting Monday, the closures will begin at 8 p.m. and last until 5 a.m., state officials said.
Road closures begin at North Harvard Street in Allston and stretch along the Charles River Esplanade to Mugar Way in Boston, near the Hatch Memorial Shell, officials said.
Traffic will be detoured into Cambridge over the Anderson Bridge, along Memorial Drive, and then be routed into Boston over the Longfellow Bridge.
The closures will allow ongoing repairs to the Storrow Drive Tunnel in the Back Bay. The work is the first phase of a two-stage project to extend the lifespan of the tunnel, which carries roughly 50,000 drivers to and from downtown Boston daily.
The outbound portion of the tunnel and accompanying roadways will not be affected.
State transportation officials said changes to the work schedule will be made when necessary to minimize impacts during major local events at TD Garden, Fenway Park, or during the FIFA World Cup and 250th anniversary celebrations scheduled for this summer.
Additional changes may be made without notice due to weather.
Transportation officials have not specified when the closures will end.
Bryan Hecht can be reached at bryan.hecht@globe.com. Follow him on Instagram @bhechtjournalism.
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