Wildfire smoke from British Columbia and Eastern Washington was expected to move off the North Olympic Peninsula as westerly winds move in from off the coast.
“It should be starting to filter out (Monday) afternoon,” said Maddie Kristell, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Seattle. “We expect conditions to improve significantly.”
Air quality Monday morning had already improved from Sunday when the National Weather Service reported a “moderate” air-quality index for the Peninsula. The Air Quality Index score for Port Angeles Monday was 28, and 25 for Port Townsend on a scale of 0-500.
The Air Quality Alert issued by NWS was set to expire at 5 p.m. Monday.
“For now, that westerly flow seems to be sufficient in terms of getting things out of our area,” Kristell said.
Some light showers may come to the area today, Kristell said, before temperatures start to rise toward the end of the week.
Wildfires in eastern Washington, the Cascades and in British Columbia are defiling the air of the Peninsula, increasing the amount of PM2.5 particles.
On Saturday, Gov. Jay Inslee issued an emergency proclamation declaring a state of emergency related to the state’s wildfires.
The Washington Military Department has activated the State Emergency Operations Center, implemented response procedures, and was coordinating resources to support state and local officials to alleviate the immediate social and economic impacts to people, property and infrastructure, the governor’s office said.
Grays Fire had burned more than 10,000 acres and was only 10 percent contained as of Monday afternoon. It had started on Friday and quickly spread in the area of Medical Lake, Four Lakes and Silver Lake near Spokane.
At last one person is reported to have died and 185 structures destroyed. Level 2 and Level 3 evacuations continued. Interstate 90 remained closed in the area on Monday.
The Oregon Road fire north of Spokane had burned over 10,000 acres as of Monday afternoon. More than 150 homes were threatened and Level 3 evacuations were in place.
The causes of the Spokane-area fires had not been determined as of Sunday.
British Columbia also was under a state of emergency order early on Saturday because of wildfires, according to the New York Times.
The Crater Creek Fire had crept over the border from British Columbia and had burned some 8,000 acres in the U.S., in the Pasayten Wilderness as of Sunday, according to Inciweb. The lightening-caused fire has consumed at least 54,000 acres in a remote location and not threatening any structures.
To check conditions, see https://fire.airnow.gov or https://www.orcaa.org.
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Reporter Peter Segall can be reached at peter.segall@peninsula dailynews.com.
