"Hazardous" air quality has hit Albury for the third day in a row, as health experts warn people they should stay inside during the holiday season.
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Bushfire smoke from both the NSW and Gippsland fire has settled on the Border in recent days, making breathing difficult for those with health issues.
Data from the NSW air quality index show that PM10 particles, which can be found in dust and smoke, climbed into what is listed as a hazardous range of more than 200 in Albury late on Sunday night.
By Christmas Eve, the PM10 levels had reached 371.
This was the worst-quality reading in the whole of NSW for Tuesday, despite there not being any bushfires on the Border.
It was also much higher than the highest reading during the 2003 North East bushfires of 250.
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"Everyone, especially people with heart of lung disease, should avoid outdoor exertion and stay inside as much as possible," the NSW Planning, Industry and Environment Department stated this week.
"If you have symptoms, rest and use your reliever medicine.
"If symptoms persist, seek medical advice."
Albury Wodonga Health and Northeast Health Wangaratta confirmed on Tuesday that neither had not seen any change in presentations to the hospital from people suffering breathing issues due to the extra bushfire smoke in the air.
The news was better in Victoria, with the air quality improving from earlier in the week.
According to the Environmental Protection Authority, the air quality from in Wangaratta dropped from "poor levels" as high as 77 on Monday, down to moderate on Christmas Eve.
Bright's dropped from "very poor" levels of 314 on Sunday, also down to moderate by Tuesday.
The smoke is likely to continue for some time yet as CFA chief officer Steve Warrington said the East Gippsland fires were would keep burning for weeks or months, and the NSW fires still burning out of control and causing road closures.
