An air quality alert is in effect Thursday for New York City and the surrounding area due to smoke from the Canadian wildfires. 

The alert will be in effect until midnight for the city, Long Island, lower Hudson Valley and part of New Jersey. 

Meanwhile, highs are expected to hit the upper 80s to low 90s, making for the hottest day of the year so far. 

"With summer almost here, New Yorkers should make plans to stay cool and safe, and sensitive groups should take steps to especially avoid potential health issues from high temperatures, humidity, and air quality," Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement. "I encourage everyone to be prepared for periods of warmer weather, including making a preparedness plan and knowing the location of local cooling centers."

AQI today

An ongoing influx of haze associated with Canadian wildfires will continue to blanket the entire region today. This will contribute to poor air quality levels throughout the day, especially for sensitive groups of people. 

Air quality alerts are issued when the Air Quality Index (AQI) exceeds 100. Today, it's expected to reach 105.

An AQI in the 101-150 range is considered "unhealthy for sensitive groups," including people with heart or lung disease, as well as older adults, children and pregnant women. 

Highs could hit 90 degrees

Despite the hazy skies, lots of sunshine will be in place, which could help temperatures reach the highest levels so far this year, topping out in the upper 80s to low 90s. In addition to the heat, humidity levels will slowly creep up. 

Overall, it's a dry day, but a stray shower or storm may develop later in the afternoon and evening, mainly south and west of the city.

For tonight, the risk of a shower or storm continues early, followed by partly cloudy skies for the rest of the night. Lows will mainly be in the 60s.

Rain not gone for long

After peaking today, temperatures will then drop off on Friday, reaching only the lower 80s. 

Friday will also mark the beginning of an unsettled stretch of weather that could last into early next week. While only a few spotty showers are likely on Friday afternoon, rain chances increase from Friday night into Saturday. 

Temperatures through the weekend will trend downwards. Meanwhile, haze and air quality levels should gradually improve through the weekend.