Raiders shorten another practice due to ‘Unhealthy’ air quality from North Bay fires

Firefighters continue to fight blazes across California. Several fires have caused untold devastation across four North Bay counties, most notably Sonoma and Napa Counties.

While air quality above Napa and Sonoma is no longer deemed ‘Hazardous’, the air quality in Oakland remains ‘Unhealthy’ according to the EPA’s Air Quality Index.

These conditions caused the Raiders to shorten practice on Wednesday. Initially the team had moved the practice to early in the day Thursday from a 1:45pm start to 11am. As of this morning, they have further modified the practice schedule, shortening field time an hour from 2.5 hours to 1.5 hours.

There is one more practice on Friday and there’s no telling if the air quality will improve by then.

This week the Raiders are preparing for the Chargers to come to town. It’s hard to say how much these shortened practices will affect their readiness. There’s also, of course, the worry that if the air quality on Sunday will affect the game.