Extremely Critical Fire Weather and Worsening Smoke This Weekend

A Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) Red Flag Warning is in effect Saturday afternoon and evening across much of Central and Eastern Washington. NWS is highlighting extremely critical fire weather conditions that could lead to rapidly changing fire and smoke behavior throughout the weekend.

This weekend

Extreme conditions tomorrow with the passage of a dry cold front will lead to significant smoke production from ongoing and emerging wildfires in Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia. While there may be a brief air quality improvement tomorrow from a strong push of southwest winds, areas closest to active fires will continue to see significant smoke impacts. By Saturday evening, shifting winds behind the cold front to west and northwest will drive smoke southward into the Columbia Basin and Spokane.

Smoke will persist on Sunday. The greatest impacts will continue to be downwind from active wildfires and in valley communities (including Methow, Chelan, and Entiat). Another burst of winds from the north on Sunday evening will again push smoke south across the Columbia Basin.

Southeast and South Central Washington will remain susceptible to smoke from fires in Oregon as well as smoke drifting south from fires in northern Washington and British Columbia.

Air Quality Alerts have been updated to include the following counties and will be reassessed on Monday morning: Asotin, Chelan, Douglas, Ferry, Grant, Lincoln, Okanogan, Pend Oreille, Spokane, and Walla Walla. 

Current Air Quality Alerts in effect in Washington State through at least the weekend.

Looking ahead across the state

Forecasted lighter winds next week may unfortunately allow smoke to linger and spread more broadly across Central and Eastern WA. It is also very likely that light offshore flow will allow smoke to drain into Western WA early next week, with potential for the most significant smoke impacts in Whatcom and Skagit Counties as well as mountain valley towns in King and Snohomish Counties. Expect the next blog update Monday as conditions evolve.

Chinook helicopter assisting suppression operations on the Modrite Fire in Northeast WA. Source: Inciweb. 

Smoke persists and critical fire weather looms

Map of active large fires in Washington and northern Oregon.

Fire Roundup

The Kaiser Canyon Fire on the Colville Reservation remains the state's largest active fire at 129,124 acres and 27% containment.

On the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest north of Conconully, the Sinlahekin Fire is the fastest-growing fire in the state and has burned 10,527 acres since it started Sunday afternoon and is 0% contained.

In the North Cascades, the Luna, Border 2, and Ptarmigan fires all remain active. The Ptarmigan Fire has been the most active, burning an estimated 18,000 acres and is 0% contained.

Further south and also on the Okanogan-Wenatchee, the Little Giant Fire is 25,480 acres and 0% contained.

Near the north end of Kachess Lake, the Three Queens Fire has burned 88 acres and remains 0% contained, however, minimal fire activity has been observed the last few days.

Jumping over to northeast Washington, the Modrite Fire is burning on the Colville Reservation just west of the Columbia River. The fire has been more active in recent days and has grown to the north. It is currently 19,475 acres and 63% contained.

Across the Columbia River and to the north, the Bradeen Hill Fire is at 4,167 acres and remains 0% contained.

In Grant County, the Railroad Fire near Beverly and Schwana is 100% contained after burning over 8,000 acres.

In southeast Washington, the Paradise Fire has shown minimal growth the past several days along the Washington-Oregon border in far southwest Columbia County. It's currently sitting at 765 acres and is 0% contained.

In Yakima County, the Ransier Fire near White Swan burned 1,302 acres and is 50% contained. All evacuations have been reduced to Level 1.

Finally, over to western Washington. In Lewis County, the Skyo Fire continues to burn west of Packwood. Fire growth has been slow but steady and it continues to produce smoke in the Cowlitz valley. Currently the fire is 202 acres and 25% contained.

Visible satellite imagery showing smoke blanketing the northwestern U.S.

Smoke Update & Outlook

Smoke has been persistent the past few days. Tuesday afternoon saw another round of more widespread breezy conditions. While this did lead to growth on existing incidents, it also brought improved air quality to locations not in the path of smoke plumes or near active fires. 

On Wednesday, some of the air quality improvements carried over into the afternoon. At the same time, any smoke that settled Tuesday night struggled to clear out with lighter winds unable scour out the smoke.

Downwind from active wildfires, conditions continue to deteriorate in the afternoon and evening. With persistent west/southwest winds, the same communities that have been impacted by Unhealthy to Very Unhealthy air the past several days will continue to see similar smoke impacts both today and Friday.

Overnight, smoke draining down valley remains a concern for areas like the Methow Valley, the Okanogan Valley, Conconully, Chelan, and Entiat. As the Little Giant Fire increases in size and pushes further southeast, increasing impacts from Plain to Leavenworth can be expected. Very Unhealthy readings will be possible in the early morning hours. On days with lighter winds, smoke will struggle to clear in the afternoon.

Smoke from fires in Oregon will continue to impact south-central and southeast Washington. Impacts will continue to be mostly in the Moderate to Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups range. One area to watch moving forward will be Klickitat County. The Grasshopper Fire, burning east of Mount Hood, continues to grow. Smoke overnight may eventually settle along the Columbia River.

Fire Weather Forecast

Thursday and Friday, winds will be similar to Wednesday. Some locally stronger gusts will develop in the Kittitas Valley and through the Columbia River Gorge in the late afternoon hours and early evening. Despite the lack of widespread stronger winds, fires will continue to burn actively and may produce significant smoke plumes.

On Saturday, critical fire weather is expected in central and eastern Washington as another dry cold front sweeps across the state. Low relative humidity and wind gusts out of the west between 30-50mph will fuel continued fire growth and lead to rapid spread of any new ignitions. With a more westerly component to the wind, communities east of the fires may see greater smoke impacts.

A Fire Weather Watch is in effect on Saturday. Image courtesy: NWS Spokane

Looking ahead, offshore flow may develop early next week. This will change how each fire behaves and may bring smoke back into western Washington. It's too early to tell specific impacts, stay tuned to the blog for more updates!

Smoke Continues in Eastern WA as Fires Grow

Fires continue to grow across the region, and new starts continue to emerge as dry and unstable conditions persist. With so much fire on the landscape, smoke is becoming a familiar sight in Eastern WA; for many communities it will likely remain that way for the foreseeable future. 

Satellite imagery (Aqua) from Sunday, July 26 showcasing significant smoke plumes in Washington and Oregon. Yesterday's daily average PM2.5 concentrations shown in the circles. 

Across Southeast WA, intermittent periods of impaired air quality continue to drift in from numerous Oregon fires. Northeast and north-central WA are seeing widespread smoke impacts from active fires in their region. Several notable fires are currently contributing to regional smoke:

• The Kaiser Canyon Fire in Nespelem has grown to over 120,000 acres and will remain active. Areas nearby and to the north and east will continue experiencing smoke. The Pearl Hill Fire SW of the Kaiser Canyon Fire began Saturday but exhibited minimal fire activity yesterday.
• The Bradeen Hill Fire (over 3,400 acres) near Gifford, WA in Stevens County started on Saturday and spread rapidly with strong winds. Smoke will impact nearby communities in addition to areas to the north and northeast such as Colville. 
• West of Tonasket, the Sinlahekin Fire is almost 1,000 acres and is burning in challenging terrain.
• In the north Cascades, smoke from the Ptarmigan Fire (2,700 acres) has been impacting the Methow Valley. Expect continued growth from this fire.
• The Little Giant Fire 22 miles northwest of Leavenworth (now over 22,000 acres) continues to exhibit extreme fire behavior; an impressive smoke plume was visible in Western WA on Saturday.
• Numerous Oregon fires are sending smoke across the border to Southeast WA, leading to intermittent smoke impacts and hazy skies in Southeast WA. 

Breezy afternoon winds out of the west and southwest today and tomorrow will help to clear out smoke in areas not immediately downwind of active fires. However, impaired air quality will continue in any areas to the north and east of active and emerging fires. Smoke will also settle into downwind valley communities in the evening and overnight hours leading to Unhealthy or Very Unhealthy air quality. 

Air Quality Alerts have been extended until Wednesday morning for the following counties due to current and expected smoke impacts: Asotin, Chelan, Douglas, Ferry, Okanogan, and Stevens. 

Conditions Favor Continued Fire Growth

Given the upcoming windy and dry weather and number of fires burning, conditions remain primed for continued fire growth. Any new or existing fires have a high probability of ignition and rapid spread. With the dynamic conditions and potential for increased fire growth, smoke and visibility impacts are largely variable--continue to keep an eye on changing conditions and we'll update as needed.

Checking in on this summer's air quality

It's still only July, yet smoke impacts have already been widespread across Eastern Washington. Unfortunately, smoky conditions are likely to continue. The plot below looks at a timeseries of the statewide daily average of all monitoring sites over the summer, broken up by region. The black line is the 2026 data to date, while the gray lines represent timeseries from previous years. Many areas have already experienced quite a few impaired air quality days, and we're only partway through the season.

Strong winds through the weekend may help air quality for some, but will also fuel fire growth

Air Quality Alerts will remain in effect through Monday morning.

Air Quality Roundup

Fires across the region continue to burn actively as areas east of the Cascades remain in a hot, dry, and windy weather pattern. With increasing winds, air quality will likely improve in some areas during the day, but poor air quality will continue downstream of active fires and during the overnight hours. Air Quality Alerts have been extended until at least Monday morning for several counties in central and eastern Washington. 

Air quality remains impaired in the immediate area surrounding active fires, particularly near the Kaiser Canyon Fire which has now burned over 106,000 acres in southeastern Okanogan County and far southwestern Ferry County. Increasing southwesterly winds will help improve the air quality to Moderate in the afternoon, but smoke is still likely to settle near the fire overnight and may reach Very Unhealthy or even Hazardous levels locally.

Strengthening southwest winds will impact the Kaiser Canyon and Modrite fires, especially on Saturday. This could result in impressive smoke plumes which may worsen air quality impacts for areas like Republic, Kettle Falls, Inchelium, and Colville. The heaviest smoke is most likely from late afternoon through the morning and may reach Unhealthy levels.

The Little Giant, Ptarmigan, and Border 2 fires will continue to burn actively in the Cascades this weekend. Smoke has been settling overnight in the Methow Valley, along Lake Chelan, along the south end of Lake Wenatchee, and particularly in the Entiat River Valley. With strong winds coming across the Cascades, these areas may experience large fluctuations in air quality throughout the day. Overnight, smoke is likely to continue traveling down these valleys resulting in locally Unhealthy to Very Unhealthy air quality.

In the Columbia Basin, the Railroad Fire will continue to produce locally poor air quality near Mattawa and Royal City. Near the Tri-Cities, forward progress of the Locust Grove Fire has been stopped and fire activity is expected to decrease. Minimal smoke impacts have been observed.

The Paradise Fire along the state line in southwest Columbia County continues to grow gradually. In Oregon, several large fire complexes continue to burn and produce smoke. With persistent southwesterly winds, smoke and haze will continue to travel toward the northeast and cross into Washington. While some smoke will remain elevated, surface impacts are likely to continue near Walla Walla, the Blue Mountains, and for portions of the Palouse. Locally Unhealthy readings are possible mainly during the overnight and early morning hours.

Critical Fire Weather

Red Flag Warnings in effect through Saturday evening.

Critical fire weather conditions are expected to develop Friday afternoon and evening and will reach a peak on Saturday. Red Flag Warnings are in effect for most areas east of the Cascades due to the hot, dry, and windy conditions. Widespread wind gusts between 35-45mph on Saturday will fuel continued active fire behavior and lead to rapid spread of any new ignitions.

Even though the winds may help improve air quality in some areas, it's important to keep on our toes. New fires can develop quickly, and smoke from new ignitions can arrive suddenly with little warning. 

Lingering Smoke Clears as New Smoke Plumes Take Shape

Air Quality Alerts

Air Quality Alerts (AQAs) in Washington were expanded today due to current conditions.  The map below shows all AQAs currently in effect.  AQAs in the Vancouver/Portland area are due to lingering haze and expected ozone today.  AQAs in Eastern and Central Washington cover most of the region due to wildfire smoke, and will be reassessed on Friday morning.

Air Quality Alerts continued (dark grey) and new (light grey) with fire locations in orange. 
Also shown are Red Flag Warnings (pink) and AirNow PM2.5 AQI markers (1 pm PDT).

Forecasted Conditions

It's a mixed bag of modest clearing coupled with new smoke plumes developing today.  The extreme heat is leading to fire growth in many areas, as satellite imagery shows new plumes emerging from fires in the Cascades.  Meanwhile, the fires in the Colville Reservation and in Oregon continue to produce large swaths of smoke.  We expect cooling and some moisture west of the Cascades in the next few days, which will also help clear the air.  Unfortunately, the weather forecast also calls for more lightning, which could lead to more fire ignitions.  Furthermore, the Columbia Basin will continue to see extreme heat and fire activity across the region will continue.  

Given the current situation, we expect significant smoke to be especially problematic around the Colville Reservation.  The Kaiser Canyon fire has burnt over 80,000 acres and will continue to grow as critical fire weather continues.  The Modrite fire isn't growing as large (9,000 acres), but is still producing large amounts of smoke today.  A new Air Resource Advisor has been assigned to the area, offering smoke outlooks for Northeastern Washington.

There are several smaller fires around Ross Lake, on both sides of the Canadian border.  While these fires don't pose much of an immediate threat to populated communities, their location will make it difficult to manage these fires, and significant growth is expected.  This means residents near the North Cascades should expect intermittent smoke impacts from these fires.  The Little Giant fire (north of Lake Wenatchee) is also on the smaller side, but its location is concerning for residents of Chelan and Douglas counties.  Smoke has increased in Plain, Entiat, Wenatchee, etc. and while there is expected clearing tomorrow, the fire will also grow and produce more smoke.

Wrap Up

It's looking like it's going to be one of those years again, where Eastern and Central Washington are hit by smoke events continuously throughout the summer.  We are on pace to have one of the worst wildfire seasons across the region in recent history.  So, while long-term forecasts are always uncertain, there's no doubt that smoke events will be a regularly recurring theme this year.  Plan ahead, stay up to date, and find clean air where you can!

GOES animation from AerosolWatch - July 22, 2026 (12 pm to 3 pm). 

Poor Air Quality Continues

Impaired air quality continues across Eastern Washington, with a significant amount of smoke lingering in the atmosphere from local and regional fires. Light winds are providing little help in dispersing the smoke.

GOES-West satellite imagery (July 21, 1046 PDT)

Fires of note in Washington:

• Kaiser Canyon Fire in Nespelem grew another 2,600 acres overnight and is now over 60,000 acres. Hot and dry conditions will continue to lead to fire growth. 
• Modrite Fire near Inchelium has grown to almost 8,000 acres.
• Little Giant Fire is burning in a remote part of the Glacier Peak Wildnerness about 41 miles northwest of Leavenworth. Currently almost 800 acres, it's located in challenging terrain and will continue to grow with the hot and dry weather. Smoke impacts to downwind communities (Plain, Leavenworth, Wenatchee) will continue as the fire remains active.

In Eastern WA, Air Quality Alerts are in place for the following counties through at least tomorrow morning: Benton, Ferry, Franklin, Grant, Lincoln, Okanogan, Pend Oreille, Spokane, Stevens, and Walla Walla Counties. [UPDATE July 22 11am: Air Quality Alerts in Eastern WA have been extended through at least Friday morning.]

Continued light winds today will keep smoke in Eastern WA, with the greatest smoke impacts closest to active fires. Expect increased smoke impacts in the Columbia Basin throughout today as well in addition to continued localized impacts in the Tri-Cities and Walla Walla areas from Oregon fires. Thanks to an increase in winds from the west, gradual improvement will likely begin Wednesday evening. Unfortunately, the increase in winds also brings critical fire weather; smoke impacts will evolve with any new fires and increased fire growth.  

In Western WA, expect upper-level haze to continue today, with the majority of the smoke remaining aloft in the atmosphere. At the surface, air quality conditions will be mostly Moderate with periods of Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups possible in Eastern King and Eastern Snohomish Counties as well as communities at higher elevation (above about 2,000 feet above sea level). Elevated ozone concentrations may also contribute to air quality impacts in Eastern King and Eastern Pierce Counties. Cleaner air and clearer skies should return Wednesday evening with onshore flow. Air Quality Alerts continue through tomorrow morning in Skagit and Whatcom Counties.

Heat and Smoke

In addition to smoke, most of the state is under heat advisories. Health impacts can be amplified when it is hot and smoky, so be sure to pay attention to any symptoms and check out DOH's resources on how to protect yourself from smoke. 

Smoke from the Little Giant Fire NW of Leavenworth (Inciweb, July 20).

Smoke Conditions Remain Challenging as Fires Intensify

Eastern Washington continues to experience impaired air quality, especially in the Spokane area and across Northeast Washington. Current smoke impacts are mainly due to the Kaiser Canyon Fire (currently ~62,000 acres) and the Modrite Fire (currently ~6,000 acres); both fires grew substantially over the weekend. Containment progress has been made on the Lyons Ferry and Royal Lake Fires and smoke impacts from those fires should be minimal going forward. 

Active fires on the landscape; satellite image from 7/19/2026

Air Quality Alerts have been issued for Ferry, Grant, Lincoln, Okanogan, Pend Oreille, Spokane and Stevens Counties through Wednesday at 9am. 

UPDATE 1:40pm: Additional Air Quality Alerts have been issued for Benton, Franklin, and Walla Walla Counties through Wednesday at 9am. 

Outlook: today and tomorrow

Expect continued impaired air quality in communities closest to active fires. In Eastern WA, smoke impacts will continue to linger in the Spokane area and Northeast Washington, with improvement expected starting late tomorrow evening. North winds may also push smoke into the Columbia Basin leading to mostly Moderate air quality with the potential for occasional periods of Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups. While surface winds are expected to keep smoke from Oregon fires generally away from Washington, there may be localized impacts in the Tri-Cities and Walla Walla areas.

In Western WA, expect to see haze aloft in the atmosphere through midweek as smoke drifts over the region. The majority of smoke should stay high above us in the atmosphere with minimal surface-level impacts (mostly Moderate with potential for Unhealthy to Sensitive Groups along the Cascade Crest). An Air Quality Alert has also been issued for Skagit and Whatcom Counties through Wednesday at 9am due to expected smoke impacts from fires in British Columbia.

Looking Ahead

The wildfire situation continues to evolve with expected hot and dry weather. With active fire behavior, continued fire growth, and potential holdover fires from recent lightning, smoke production may increase across the region. 

We'll continue monitoring the changing conditions and update as needed. Keep an eye on current and forecasted conditions at the map at the top of this page (note that today's cloud cover is limiting our ability to accurately predict smoke so forecasted air quality may differ from localized conditions).

Numerous new wildfires across the region; Lyons Ferry fire pouring smoke into Spokane

Lightning and New Wildfires

Numerous new wildfires have been ignited by lightning in the last few days, particularly across eastern Oregon and Washington where fuel (vegetation) conditions are very dry and receptive to fire. While thunderstorm chances are now diminishing, additional new fires may continue to emerge in the days ahead as warm, dry weather continues and intensifies into next week.

The largest and most active fires in Washington right now appear to be the Lyons Ferry fire (~30,000 acres), the Royal Lake fire (~12,000 acres), and the Kaiser Canyon fire (~2,200 acres). Keep in mind that, with the rapidly evolving situation, acreage numbers may not be fully accurate on these incidents.

Large wildfires in Oregon and Washington as of Friday morning, July 17, 2026. Many of these fires are new in the last couple days. Data via the DNR Wildfire Intel Dashboard.

Roughly 5,000 lightning strikes have occurred in Washington since Tuesday, many of them occurring with little or no rainfall. Data courtesy National Lightning Detection Network by Vaisala, processed by Iowa Environmental Mesonet. 

Smoke and Air Quality

Eastern Washington woke up to widespread smoke, with the Spokane area in particular getting hammered by smoke from the Lyons Ferry fire. Air quality readings in Spokane have been VERY UNHEALTHY to even HAZARDOUS at times Friday morning. 

GOES satellite imagery at 7 am (Friday July 17).

The air quality index at Liberty Lake (Spokane metro) monitoring station has climbed into HAZARDOUS Friday morning. Data via WA Dept. of Ecology.

As a result, Air Quality Alerts have been issued from now through at least Sunday morning for Spokane, Adams, Whitman, and Lincoln counties. Alerts could be expanded to other areas as the smoke situation evolves. As a reminder, the blog has multiple resources linked on how you can stay safe during periods of wildfire smoke.

Looking Ahead

Through the weekend, wind patterns favor onshore flow and south or southwest winds across eastern Washington. While the air quality in western WA and the Cascades will remain GOOD because of this onshore flow from the Pacific Ocean, areas to the north and east of existing and emerging incidents in eastern Washington and Oregon will experience continued periods of smoke. 

Exact smoke concentrations and locations of worst smoke are difficult to predict with confidence because of the rapidly evolving wildfire situation, not just in Washington but because of the dynamic fire situation in eastern Oregon. If eastern Oregon fires continue to grow, smoke impacts could deteriorate further in south-central and southeastern WA (Tri-Cities, Walla Walla, Pullman). 

Fire weather conditions will also remain elevated into next week, and firefighting resources are beginning to get stretched thin, which could lead to additional fire growth on active incidents. The bottom line: stay tuned to your local air quality by visiting fire.airnow.gov -- and we will post another update on Monday. 

Turner Hill fire in North Idaho smoking out Spokane this morning

A fast moving fire started last night in the Turner Hill area, north of Sandpoint. Low mixing heights and a direct wind flow brought smoke through Sandpoint and into Spokane early this morning. Several monitors show Unhealthy NowCast AQI values for several hours. The weather system passing over the region won't help with mixing heights, but changing winds and precipitation should limit the duration of smoke in the Spokane area.

Turner Hill Fire Photo acquired from https://app.watchduty.org/i/108749/reports/656453

The Turner Hill fire is being managed by the Idaho Department of Lands and North Bench Fire District, with over 20 people actively working the fire last night. There was also a brush fire on an I-90 ramp this morning, which contributed a little to the smoke in Spokane this morning.

PM2.5 in north Idaho and Spokane area (8 am, Thursday July 16)

Lots of rain and thunderstorms are actively moving over northwest Washington and northeast Oregon today. Eastern Washington precipitation amounts will be more sporadic. Windy and dry conditions are anticipated for the Columbia Gorge and Cascade gaps of eastern Washington but the humidity levels will surge during the evening. However, a warming and drying trend will kick back in regionally this weekend.

Many lightning strikes are occurring across the region, so new fire ignitions are likely to be discovered over the next few days. Stay tuned for changing conditions and we'll post updates as needed. 

Fire Weather Ramps Up This Week!

Fire Weather This Week

Hot and dry conditions return to the inland Pacific NW today.  Tuesday and Wednesday will get even hotter, and dry thunderstorms are expected east of the Cascades, posing lightning ignition risks.  There may be some precipitation in areas, but fire weather will remain elevated.  We expect slight cooling on Thursday but fire danger will remain high as we approach a drier and hotter weekend.

Forecast from National Weather Service - Spokane Office

Fires in Oregon

The East Evans Creek fire in southwest Oregon, north of Medford, has been producing significant smoke the past few days, with large plumes seen in satellite imagery.  The fire has burned nearly 4,000 acres but there has been a very large firefighter response, with over 1,000 people working the fire, actively protecting homes, and using aircraft to drop both fire retardant and water.  

Other wildfires of note (Anthony, Salmon, and Olive Butte) are clustered around the North Fork John Day Wilderness Area in northeast Oregon.  Incident management teams are working hard on these fires but more activity is expected this week.

Brunswick Complex in BC

The Brunswick Complex in BC received small amounts of precipitation over the weekend, which helped limit activity when coupled with the cooler temperatures.  Forest fuels remain dry and warm and dry weather will build early this week, but some precipitation may materialize on Thursday night.

Smoke Aloft This Morning

Fire in the Northwest Territories are producing copious amounts of smoke, with bands aloft seen as far south as Oregon in satellite imagery this morning.  This isn't a concern for our region, and there is no evidence of smoke mixing down to the surface.

Smoke Coverage from the NOAA Hazard Mapping System for Monday July 13, 2026 (8 am).