A weather warning issued for Toronto via Environment Canada in October 2022 was questioned by staff for being insensitive but was issued anyway, according to a new bombshell report.

The government agency faced heated backlash last year after issuing a special air quality statement citing the potential for increased air pollution in Toronto and surrounding areas due to Diwali fireworks. 

"A special air quality statement is in place due to the possibility of deteriorating air quality as a result of fireworks for Diwali," the statement issued on Oct. 24, 2022 read. 

"Light winds and stagnating weather conditions are expected to cause increasing levels of air pollution. Air quality may deteriorate if the smoke from fireworks remains at or descends to ground level." 

I have never seen an air quality warning due to fireworks for Canada Day or Victoria Day or NYE, only Diwali. If air quality statements for fireworks are now a thing it’s incredibly problematic to roll this out for the first time today: pic.twitter.com/Wb9ikNNQMQ

— Krista Coughlin (@kristacoughlin) October 24, 2022

Shortly after being issued, Environment Canada was met with an onslaught of criticism, with many people pointing out that the government agency doesn't normally release any warnings for other holidays where fireworks are a quintessential part of the celebrations, including Canada Day or New Year's Eve. 

Hundreds of emails and communications between staff at the agency were contained in more than 400 pages of documents obtained by The Canadian Press through an access-to-information request. 

Communications show that at least two Environment Canada meteorologists warned that the air quality advisory could be perceived as discriminatory. 

One staff member suggested that the communications department should be looped in before proceeding with the advisory, while another expressed that decisions to issue warnings must be based on meteorological conditions only. 

Wow just because it’s Diwali they release this saying that the fireworks are causing air pollution 😬😒 What about the other holidays pic.twitter.com/2unZoxap4W

— ૐ (@borntoruntj) October 24, 2022

One employee was shot down by a colleague, who insisted that the number and type of fireworks set off during Canada Day do not compare to those set off for Diwali. 

Following the advisory, the government agency received 60 formal complaints, with people calling the statement "racist," "shameful," "Eurocentric," and insensitive. 

By the end of the day, Environment Canada reissued the advisory without explicitly mentioning Diwali and publicly apologized. "Please stick to meteorological explanations," reads an internal communication to meteorologists at the agency. 

Diwali, which falls on Nov. 12 this year, is celebrated by Hindus, some Sikhs, Jains, and Buddhists. The date is based on a lunar calendar, and usually falls between mid-October and mid-November each year.