Statewide smoke forecast through Friday

Air quality is mostly Good statewide and isn't expected to degrade beyond Moderate between now and Friday.

Here's a forecast of roughly where to expect smoke on Thursday (red triangles are fire locations)

Eastern Washington: North-northeast winds have dispersed smoke from the Spokane area. It is being blown into the Columbia Basin in lower concentrations. This is expected to continue through Friday, with more smoke impacts between about 7PM and 10AM, followed by daytime clearing.

Western Washington: Northeast winds have picked up. Depending on activity of the Buck Creek fire, light smoke could settle between Mount Vernon and Tacoma between now and Friday. Again, mostly between 7PM and 10AM, and not expected to be worse than Moderate. A new fire within JBLM is likely to cause some smoke within the Spanaway- Olympia- Centralia triangle.

Smoke from fires in Olympic National Park, clearly visible on satellite images, is likely to impact the Aberdeen area, resulting in Moderate air.

There is a Heat Advisory through 8PM on Friday and a Fire Weather Watch for all of Thursday afternoon for the west side. Here's the map from http://www.esri.com/services/disaster-response/wildfire

8/23/2016 Improving Air in Spokane tomorrow?

The National Weather Service - Spokane office has a hopeful post about a coming wind shift that should help improve air quality in Spokane tomorrow.  See this and other Spokane area weather news at this link: http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/FXC/wxstory.php?wfo=otx

8/23/16 Spokane Region Affected by Smoke

Air Quality Continues to be affected by wildfire smoke
Updated 9:15 a.m., Tuesday, August 23, 2016

SPOKANE, Wash.-- Smoke from area wildfires continues to impact local air quality and officials from Spokane Regional Health District (SRHD) and Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency (Spokane Clean Air) are recommending that residents take the necessary precautions to protect their health.

On Tuesday morning, the Air Quality Index (AQI) for the Spokane-area reached the "unhealthy for sensitive groups" or "orange" category. As of 9:15 a.m., the AQI hit the "unhealthy" or "red" category. Each hour, the AQI can flutuate and is expected to improve as the day progresses.

 

Spokane Clean Air's air quality forecaster says the breezy conditions today should help disperse some of the smoke from the local wildfires. Air quality should improve during the day, but dust and smoke levels will increase at times, especially in those areas directly downwind from nearby wildfires. 

"Smoke from wildfires is especially harmful for those with health conditions like asthma. We recommend that people who are sensitive to poor air quality limit their time outdoors, follow their breathing management plans, keep medications on hand and contact their health provider if necessary," said Dr. Joel McCullough, SRHD health officer.  

Smoke is a mix of gases and fine particles. Breathing smoke can make anyone sick. Even someone who is healthy can get sick if there is enough smoke in the air. Breathing in smoke can have immediate health effects, including:

• Coughing
• Trouble breathing normally
• Stinging eyes
• A scratchy throat
• Runny nose
• Irritated sinuses
• Wheezing and shortness of breath
• Chest pain
• Headaches
• An asthma attack
• Tiredness
• Fast heartbeat

It's important that individuals limit their exposure to smoke - especially if they are susceptible. Here are some steps people can take to protect themselves from smoke:

• Pay attention to air quality reports. The Air Quality Index (AQI) uses color-coded categories to report when air quality is good, moderate or unhealthy.   
• Use common sense. If it looks and smells smoky outside, it is probably not a good time to go for a jog, mow the lawn or allow children to play outdoors.
• Individuals with asthma or other respiratory or lung conditions should follow their provider's directions on taking medicines. They should call their provider if symptoms worsen.
• If a person has heart or lung disease, is an older adult, or has children, they should talk with their provider about whether and when they should leave the area. When smoke is heavy for a prolonged period of time, fine particles can build up indoors even though a person may not see them.
• Some room air cleaners can help reduce particulate levels indoors, as long as they are the right type and size for your home.
• Paper "comfort" or "dust masks" are not the answer. The kinds of masks that people can commonly buy at the hardware store are designed to trap large particles, such as sawdust. But they generally will not protect lungs from the fine particles in smoke.
  • Respiratory masks labeled N95 or N100 provide some protection - they filter out some fine particles but not hazardous gases in smoke (such as carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, and acrolein.) This type of mask can be found at many hardware and home repair stores and pharmacies.

More information:

Spokane Current Air Quality webpage
Spokane Regional Health District wildfire FAQ

Washington State Department of Health Wildfire Smoke webpage

8/22/2016 New fires in eastern WA today

A number of new fires have been detected and named in Washington since yesterday and look to be affecting air quality in the Spokane area. The fire icons on the map above (not visible if you're viewing this on your phone) show locations of heat as detected by satellite so should match up with the fires described below.  (Older fires are not included on this list.)

Deep North WA-NES-000802. 25 miles NE of Colville, WA. Start 8/21. Full Suppression. Cause: Unknown. 600 acres. Timber. Evacuation notices in effect. IMT2 NW Team 10 (Ciraulo) ordered.

Hart WA-NES-000806. 13 miles N of Davenport, WA. Start 8/21. Full Suppression. Cause: Unknown. 6,000 acres. Grass and Brush. Structures threatened. Evacuations in effect. State Mob authorized 8/21. IMT2 NW Team 7 (Knerr) and IMT2 NW Team 9 (Goff) ordered.

Spokane Complex WA-NES-000814. IMT2 NW Team 11 (Rabe) ordered. State Mob authorized 8/21. Includes: Wellesley WA-NES-000807. 7 miles NE of Spokane, WA. Start 8/21. Full Suppression. Cause: Unknown. 200 acres. Evacuations in effect.

Yale WA-NES-000808. 12 miles S of Spokane, WA. Start 8/21. Full Suppression. Cause: Unknown. 4,000 acres. Evacuations in effect.

Kahlotus WA-WFS-000712. 10 miles SW of Washtucna, WA. Start 8/21. Full Suppression. Cause: Unknown. 20,000 acres. Grass and Brush. Evacuations in effect. State Mob authorized 8/21. Limited information at this time.

Wildfire smoke "Twitter chat", Monday Aug. 22 at 10:30am.

Wenatchee 2012

We may luck out this year and not experience the severity of wildfire smoke that blanketed large parts of Washington in recent summers, but you may have lingering questions about how smoke can affect health.  If so, there is a unique opportunity to join a live "Twitter chat" at 10:30 am PDT Monday, Aug. 22. where EPA research cardiologist Dr. Wayne Cascio and health effects scientist Susan Stone will be joined by experts from the U.S. Forest Service and the Centers for Disease Control to discuss:

• What we know about wildfire smoke and health
• How to find out if wildfire smoke is affecting air quality where you live
• What steps you can take, before and during a fire, to protect your health
• Efforts by the Forest Service to supplement what state and local authorities do already to help the public

Tweet your own questions during the chat by using the #WildfireSmoke hashtag.  

Follow @EPAair and @FSNIFC, and the #WildfireSmoke hashtag to join the conversation.

Learn more at EPA's Our Planet, Our Home blog.