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The sight of one the most famous skylines on the planet shrouded in an orange hue has made front pages around the world.

But for those living and working in New York City, it was a grim and worrying spectacle they could see for themselves.

"The sky took on an unnatural yellow pallor and it got very dark," building surveyor Anthony Galasso, who was working in the Bronx, told the Â鶹ԼÅÄ.

There's a saying in New York that only the tourists look up. But on Wednesday evening even the locals were craning their necks to get a glimpse.

And for many it was a chance to record one of the most photographed cities looking rather different.

For many New Yorkers, it was a surreal experience to witness.

"It smells like someone is doing a barbecue," Nicha Suaittiyanon, a 30-year-old tourist from Thailand, told the AFP news agency.

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