Hazardous air could stick around until Thursday
Hazardous smoky air from wildfires could hang around through at least Thursday, the Northwest Weather Service predicted in an update Monday afternoon. However, possible rain showers on Thursday through Saturday could bring some relief.
The air quality index throughout much of Washington state was in the 300s on Tuesday, which is hazardous to health, according to the state Department of Ecology’s tracker.
Smoky air has lingered so long partially because of wind patterns, according to Washington Smoke Blog, a collaborative project of state, county, and federal agencies responding to wildfire-related air concerns.
“Light southerly winds will continue for another day at least, dragging more smoke directly from Oregon fires northward along the I-5 corridor,” wrote Ranil Dhammapala of the Department of Ecology, in a post on Monday. “So even if the ubiquitous smoke pool from offshore starts to erode a bit, a replacement is en route.”
This story was originally published September 15, 2020 at 8:35 AM.
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