AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – A traffic stop attempt by the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office ended in a rollover crash Friday afternoon after the driver refused to stop, authorities said.

Deputies attempted to stop the red 2017 Honda Civic around 2:22 p.m. on Peach Orchard Road near Mike Padgett Highway, according to the sheriff’s office. The driver continued south on Mike Padgett Highway before traveling east on Marvin Griffin Road, deputies said.

The pursuit ended near Marvin Griffin Road and Doug Barnard Parkway when the driver lost control, went into a ditch and crashed through a fence at the Augusta Water Works Wastewater Treatment Facility, according to authorities. The car overturned.

The driver had visible injuries that were described as non-life-threatening and was taken to a local hospital for treatment, the sheriff’s office said.

Authorities said warrants will be served after the driver is released from the hospital. Charges are expected to include multiple traffic violations, including felony fleeing or attempting to elude and DUI.

NEW YORK – Millions of people in the Great Lakes, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states muddled through another day of unhealthy air from uncontrolled wildfires on Friday.

The thick smoke enveloped the nation’s capital in a gloomy, eerie haze and prompted Major League Baseball’s Cleveland Guardians to postpone their game against Pittsburgh Pirates in Ohio.

Warnings of dangerous conditions were expected to remain in effect through Saturday across a wide swath of the U.S., though there’s potential for temporary improvement with storms forecast in some affected areas during the weekend.

D.C. resident Stewart Verdery awoke Friday to take in his usual sunrise view of the city’s famous landmarks from a rooftop, only to be greeted by a darkened horizon and no monuments in sight.

“It’s pretty crazy to wake up at sunrise and not see the sun when it’s not even raining,” he said by phone after posting a video of the surreal scene on X. “And it smells like somebody’s having the world’s largest cookout.”

No end in sight for smoky conditions

There may be pockets of relief at times, such as this weekend, but the smoky conditions won’t be gone anytime soon as the fires continue to burn largely unchecked, cautioned Bob Oravec, a lead forecaster at the National Weather Service based in Maryland.

Wildfires are burning in the Ontario area of Canada as well as the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota, which U.S. officials have closed as they fight to put out the blazes.

“The source of the smoke is going to continue on for certainly a week, probably,” Oravec said. “It’s just going to depend upon which way the wind’s blowing as to where the smoke is going to affect the most.”

On Friday, communities in Minnesota, Illinois and Michigan, including Detroit, again registered some of the worst air quality in the world, according to IQAir, an air quality monitoring website.

Not far behind Detroit was Washington, D.C., where the smoke created eerie scenes. The Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial and other national landmarks were enveloped in an orange-hued haze throughout much of the day.

People, particularly those with heart or lung disease, older adults and children, were urged to limit or avoid going outside until air quality improved.

Long-term exposure to smoky conditions can complicate existing health problems and lead to chronic and deadly issues, including respiratory illness, cardiovascular and neurological diseases and premature death, officials warned.

For Maria Travela, Friday was her first day outside since after smoke from the wildfires blanketed the Chicago area early Thursday.

“Now it’s better. This morning, it was bad,” said Travela, who has asthma and wore a mask as she crossed a bridge over the Chicago River downtown. “They were saying that, for people like me, with asthma, any kind of issues like that, it would be bad for your lungs.”

Trump criticizes Canada

Hundreds of wildfires are burning in Canada, including about 190 in northern Ontario, Premier Doug Ford said at a news conference. Flames destroyed the Namaygoosisagagun First Nation community, and 10 northern Ontario communities have been evacuated or were being evacuated, with more possible.

The increase of fire in vast Canadian forests has largely been blamed on climate change.

In response to the smoke, U.S. President Donald Trump made a social media post Friday that blamed Canada for its forest management and threatened additional tariffs on Canada.

The Canadian government didn’t initially respond to questions about Trump’s comments.

Asked about a Michigan lawmaker’s criticism about the smoke, Ford noted Canada has helped the U.S. fight fires in the past.

“If there’s some politicians out there chirping away, maybe what you should do rather than complain is send support, send help, because we have done the exact same thing for our American friends and that’s what you’re supposed to do,” Ford said.

Conditions should improve for Sunday’s World Cup final

In the New York City area, there was also concern about how the smoky air might impact Sunday’s World Cup final between soccer powerhouses Spain and Argentina at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

Oravec said winds will continue pushing the wildfire smoke east in the U.S., though conditions should be better on game day than on Saturday.

On Thursday, a thick haze tinged with orange and yellow darkened skies across several states and partly obscured Manhattan’s skyline.

Officials from New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and other Northeast states distributed free K95 face masks, canceled outdoor programming and opened libraries and other public buildings as cooling centers where people could get a respite from the sooty air.

As Friday progressed, air quality measures improved from “unhealthy” to “moderate” in some places in and around New York City. A strong sun broke through a thin veil of smoke, and clear blue sky was visible across much of the region by Friday afternoon.

Rainstorms could bring reprieve in some places

Saturday brings a high chance of thunderstorms across much of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, which will help dampen the bad air.

Organizers of the All-American Soap Box Derby in Ohio hope air quality improves enough to allow for Saturday’s championship races. The major annual competition in Akron scrubbed Friday’s events over air quality concerns.

“I think they made the right choice,” said Dayna Lincoln, a pediatric nurse practitioner from Hodgdon, Maine, whose family drove 15 hours for their 9-year-old daughter’s race on Saturday.

“I’m glad they’re not forcing the kids out into it,” she said. “There are kids with asthma and adults with respiratory conditions who could really suffer.”

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Associated Press reporters Jim Morris in Vancouver, British Columbia, John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, and Cybele Mayes-Osterman in Chicago contributed to this story.

KERR COUNTY, Texas – Recovery efforts are ongoing in Kerr County. 

The county received 20 inches of rain over the past few days, which led to lots of flooding.

What they’re saying:

Paul Hawkins, a longtime Kerrville resident, picked up debris along the Guadalupe River Friday afternoon.

“We just kept having flood, after flood, after flood. Then, flood wave, after wave. It kept getting higher and higher, and it actually got up a little higher than it did on the Fourth of July last year,” he said.

He says a white cross that was knocked over was supposed to honor the victims of last year’s flood.

“We just had it all looking really nice and stuff, and people were starting to bring their children back, so they could play here, and it was really nice again, and so just buckle up, get back to work, and get it straightened out here just as fast as we can,” Hawkins said.

After the devastation last year, Hawkins reflected on how the community feels.

“It’s a bad blow, and it’s really depressing. Even though we needed this rain to fill up our reservoirs and fill up our aquifers because they were way, way low, and this will get that done, but here in Hill Country it’s a land of extremes, you either get too much or you don’t get enough, and that’s just the way it is,” he said.

Dig deeper:

Multiple roads are still closed in Kerr County. Officials say at least six bridges have major damage, but they have to wait for water to fully recede to further assess.

Chunks of the road are washed away on Town Creek Road, and other parts are covered with rock and sediment.

On Third Street, part of the sidewalk is washed up, the guardrail is damaged, and tree limbs and debris are clogged on the sides of the bridge.

Kerr County officials say they were much better prepared for this flood than they were last year.

The Kerr County Sheriff’s Office said they had to do multiple water rescues this week, and there were 232 calls for service on Thursday, July 16. 

Officials set up an incident command center before the weather hit.

Statewide, there are two deaths from this flood event. One of the victims was identified as John Steward. 

FOX 7 Austin confirmed Steward graduated from Westlake High School in 1979. He also played football, ran track and sang with the Madrigals.

Officials say there are no reports of missing people in Kerr County.

“Much different than the loss of life that happened between this one and the last one, that goes back to, we weren’t caught off guard by something nobody expected,” State Rep. Wes Virdell (R-Kerrville), said during a press conference.

Alerts and sirens went off as they were supposed to.

“The flood warning system, something that is very important to everyone here. The good news is it worked, and it worked the way it was designed to work,” Tom Jones, Precinct 1 Commissioner for Kerr County, said.

The county says 17 people were in a shelter Friday morning that was cleared by the afternoon.

Texas flooding: How to help

What you can do:

If you want to volunteer for recovery efforts, click here.

If you want to donate to help out, click here.