Air pollution in Lahore, Pakistan’s second-largest city, soared on Saturday, with one official calling it a record for the smog-choked megacity.

For days, the city of 14 million has been engulfed by smog, a mix of smog and pollutants caused by low-quality diesel fumes, smoke from seasonal agricultural burning and winter chills.

The air quality index, which measures a variety of pollutants, soared to 1,067, well above the level of 300 considered “dangerous,” according to IQAir data.

“We have never reached the level of 1,000,” Jahangir Anwar, a senior environmental protection official in Lahore, told AFP.

“The air quality index will remain high for the next three to four days,” Anwar said.

The level of deadly pollutants PM2.5 (fine particles in the air that cause the most damage to health) peaked at 610, more than 40 times the limit of 15 in a 24-hour period considered healthy by the WHO.

“As a mother, I am full of anxiety,” Lilly Mirza, 42, told AFP from the suffocated city.

“Last year wasn’t that bad, it was much better. Someone needs to tell us what happened. Did a smog bomb explode somewhere?”

Mirza said she felt “completely terrified” after taking her son to a sports match in one of the most contaminated places: “I came home very stressed.”

Breathing toxic air has catastrophic health consequences; The WHO says prolonged exposure can cause stroke, heart disease, lung cancer and respiratory diseases.

Smog is particularly pronounced in winter, when cold, denser air traps emissions from the poor-quality fuels used to power the city’s vehicles and factories at ground level.

The smell of toxic fumes has become familiar to painter Rehmat, 40, who has only one name.

“What can a poor painter like me do if the government can’t solve this? I’ll put on my mask and work,” he told AFP.

Last month, authorities banned schoolchildren from exercising outdoors until January and adjusted school hours to prevent children from traveling when pollution is most severe.

Children are particularly vulnerable because they have less developed lungs and breathe more rapidly, inhaling more air relative to their size than adults.

Last week, the provincial environmental protection agency announced new restrictions in four “hot spots” in the city.

Tuk-tuks equipped with polluting two-stroke engines are prohibited, as are restaurants that barbecue without filters.

Government offices and private companies will have half their staff working from home starting Monday.

Construction work has stopped and street and food vendors, who often cook on stoves, must close at 8 pm.

Pollution exceeding levels considered safe by the WHO shortens the life expectancy of Lahore residents by an average of 7.5 years, according to the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago.

According to UNICEF, nearly 600 million children in South Asia are exposed to high levels of air pollution and half of childhood pneumonia deaths are associated with air pollution.

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