Early Addition: Smoking 30 cigs in 8 hours

Also, Daniel Penny's indictment and strict lifeguard training. [View this email in a browser.]( [Get a T-Shirt When You Donate!]( Gothamist relies on your support to make news available to all. This month only: You'll get a t-shirt when you become a member. [Donate Now]( [Like smoking 30 cigarettes in 8 hours: NYC’s air quality crisis, tallied]( [first image]( [by Emily Nadal]( It’s a sunny Thursday morning in New York and though the smoky haze from last week has cleared up, it may have left some lingering effects on people akin to chain smoking cigarettes. In Bushwick, Brooklyn on June 7, being outside for an eight-hour work shift was about the same as smoking 30 cigarettes. Smoke exposure to that degree worsens symptoms for respiratory diseases, like asthma, and cardiovascular conditions such as heart disease. Here’s what else is happening: - A grand jury [reportedly voted to indict Daniel Penny]( the 24-year-old Marine veteran charged with the chokehold killing of Jordan Neely. - The number of blood donors under the age of 30 has declined significantly in the past decade so the [New York Blood Center is trying out a mixed-reality zen garden experience]( to entice more young people. - NYC goes [well beyond state guidelines for lifeguard training]( and while the strict requirements are probably useful, it may be one reason the city is dealing with another seasonal lifeguard shortage. - A new affordable housing building with 75 units on Long Island [caters exclusively to older LGBTQ adults]( who often face barriers to accessing housing. - A Queens [councilmember is pushing to secure funding]( and implement infrastructure improvements to mitigate future flooding at Kissena Park in Flushing. - House GOP lawmakers passed a bill Tuesday which [prevents spending of federal funds on regulating gas stoves]( as a hazardous product with more measures on the horizon. - Police say a [New Jersey 3-year-old died]( on Wednesday after being found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. - Jersey City is trying hard to [bring back mounted police,]( a unit that hasn’t been around for 50 years in the city. - Members of the City Council are getting ready to [fight for a series of housing bills they pushed forward]( which Mayor Eric Adams is considering vetoing. - A fire on the top floor of a Bronx apartment building [killed two people on Wednesday]( and injured several others. - Legal Aid Society advocates [publicly released a letter]( asking the NYPD’s inspector general to look into the roll out of the department's robot dog and see if it violates surveillance law. - A long-awaited performing arts center near One World Trade Center is [set to open in September]( with programming that emphasizes access and inclusion. - We are now living in an age of a [Twitch-streamed AI Jesus]( who is available 24/7 to offer “guidance and wisdom based on Jesus’ teachings.” “They are surviving in China and India. But imagine what this means for weekly peaks – it’s not that you cannot survive it, but it’s definitely not healthy.” - Dr. Marianthi-Anna Kioumourtzoglou, assistant professor of environmental health sciences at Columbia’s Mailman School of Public Health [DISCUSSING THE EFFECTS OF THE RECENT AIR QUALITY CRISIS.]( More from Gothamist [second image]( [Does NJ need an AI czar? State senator says it's the intelligent move.]( As artificial intelligence gains traction in almost every aspect of our world, one New Jersey lawmaker is looking to put an expert in charge of how it's implemented in the state's government. [Upper East Side announces new campaign to tackle dog poop]( New York City Councilmember Julie Menin, whose district includes the Upper East Side, announced a plan Monday to install more than 250 aluminum signs on Upper East Side streets, reminding dog owners to pick up after their pets. [We Rely On Your Support]( [Asthma ER visits during NYC smoke haze were highest in high-poverty, Black and Latino areas]( The New York City ZIP codes with the highest numbers of asthma-related emergency room visits during last week's smoke haze were disproportionately in low-income, predominantly Black and Hispanic communities, according to an analysis of local health department and Census data by Gothamist. [This Hoboken park fights floods by holding 2 million gallons of stormwater]( Hoboken city officials on Monday inaugurated a five-acre park that will double as an underground stormwater basin and help mitigate against chronic flooding. [New York Public Radio] [WNYC]( | [WQXR]( | [NJPR]( | [GOTHAMIST]( [WNYC STUDIOS]( | [THE GREENE SPACE]( Copyright © New York Public Radio. All rights reserved. 160 Varick Street, New York, NY 10013 [TERMS OF USE]( You can update your [PREFERENCES]( or [UNSUBSCRIBE]( from this list.