Haze returned to the Portland-Vancouver area Saturday night, and the conditions are expected to stick around until Wednesday.
The Washington Smoke Information blog — a coordinated effort by county, state and federal officials to share information on smoke from wildland fires — listed Vancouver’s air quality Sunday as moderate.
That designation is one level below good. When smoke conditions are moderate, people with health conditions are advised to limit any time outdoors and avoid strenuous outdoor activities, as they may begin to experience worsened symptoms.
Large smoke plumes are drifting across the Pacific Northwest from numerous wildfires in the region, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
“The ongoing wildfire activity affecting portions of the western United States and western Canada continues to produce enormous amounts of smoke that covers most of Canada and the northern portion of the United States,” NOAA said.
Smoky skies have covered Clark County off and on for weeks. The worst so far drifted in this past week, with three days of air deemed unhealthy for sensitive groups. The air cleared up for two days on Friday and most of Saturday. At one point this summer, Portland’s air quality ranked among the worst in the world, placing fourth behind cities such as Mumbai, India, and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, according to The Oregonian.
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and Southwest Clean Air Agency both issued air quality advisories Sunday. The advisory for Washington covers Clark County, as well as Cowlitz, Lewis, Skamania and Wahkiakum counties.
Conditions were predicted to worsen Sunday evening, with smoke lasting through Wednesday.
The National Weather Service’s seven-day forecast for Vancouver lists widespread smoke and haze through at least Tuesday night. The temperature should reach 91 degrees on Monday and 96 degrees on Tuesday.
Wednesday will have a high of 89 degrees, and then things should cool down for several days, with partly cloudy skies and the temperature reaching the high 70s.
