Photos: San Francisco city engulfed in apocalyptic, orange haze

Wildfires raging over the past few weeks in the United States' California on September 9 resulted in hazy clouds of smoke darkening the sky to form an eerie orange glow over the West Coast. Drivers were urged to turn on their headlights and slow down due to poor visibility. However, the air quality index did not drop. Social media was filled with photos of the unusual sky, and many users started comparing it to the apocalypse.

Updated on: Sep 11, 2020 11:30 AM IST

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The San Francisco Bay Bridge and the city skyline are obscured by orange smoke and haze as seen from Treasure Island in San Francisco, California on September 9. Hazy clouds of smoke from dozens of wildfires darkened the sky to an eerie orange glow over much of the West Coast on September 9, keeping street lights illuminated during the day and putting residents on edge. (Brittany Hosea-Small / AFP)

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A view of the San Francisco skyline on September 9. While satellites showed a band of smoke hovering along the coast, there was little scent of smoke and the air quality index did not reach unhealthy levels, AP reported. (Brittany Hosea-Small / AFP)

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A woman walks along the Embarcadero under an orange, smoke-filled sky in San Francisco on September 9. According to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District spokesman Ralph Borrmann, smoke particles above the marine layer were acting like a filter, scattering blue light and only allowing yellow, orange and red light to reach the ground, AP reported. (Brittany Hosea-Small / AFP)

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A view of Oracle Park before the game between the San Francisco Giants and Seattle Mariners on September 9. The smoke blocked out so much sunlight that a forecast for temperatures to climb to 90 degrees (32 Celsius) dipped to 60 degrees (15.5 Celsius), AP reported. (Kyle Terada / USA TODAY Sports)

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Visitors seen sitting under the orange sky at Dolores Park in San Francisco on September 9. Borrmann said the conditions were expected to linger until September 11. By then, the district expects to issue its 25th consecutive ‘Spare The Air’ alert requiring residents to cut pollution — the longest stretch since the program began in 1991. (Brittany Hosea-Small / AFP)

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Vehicles under the orange smoke-filled sky in San Francisco on September 9. The previous streak of ‘Spare The Air’ alert was for 14 days in 2018 when the Bay Area was choked by smoke from a fire that devastated the town of Paradise and killed 85 people, AP reported. (Stephen Lam / REUTERS)

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A view of the area along the Geary and O’Farrell Streets blanketed by an orange haze in San Francisco on September 9. Poor visibility because of the dark sky also prevented California’s largest utility, Pacific Gas and Electric, from conducting their aerial inspections needed to restore power for about 167,000 customers, spokesman Jeff Smith told AP. (Adrianna Tan via REUTERS)

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People in kayaks paddle in McCovey Cove outside Oracle Park in San Francisco on September 9. According to AP, air quality warnings were also issued throughout the Pacific Northwest, and people in communities from southern Oregon to north of Seattle reported blood-red skies and choking smoke. (Tony Avelar / AP)