Montana DEQ Forest Fire Smoke Advisory
September 6, 2005
10:00 AM
Current Situation
Smoke is visible in the south end of the Bitterroot valley and in the Phillipsburg area this morning. Skies are generally hazy in a band from Ravalli County northeast into southern Lewis and Clark County. Teton County is seeing the effects of the Hazard Lake fire near Choteau. UNHEALTHY levels are likely in the valleys near the Signal Rock fire located between Darby and Phillipsburg. Butte is reporting MODERATE smoke levels at this time. Blue skies are the rule across the rest of the state. Smoke will continue to be a problem in the areas near active fires today. See the forecast below for information about what to expect later today and tomorrow.
Today's analysis from NOAA's satellite services division shows the active fires in the Northwest US and Canada and the smoke plumes spreading out downwind and layering on top of each other.
Gray indicates smoke plume.
Red indicates hot spot detected.
Fire size is exaggerated for visibility at this scale
To identify individual fires on graphic above go to the USDA - Remote Sensing Applications Center
Real time particulate information is currently available in most of the larger urban areas from several different sources including: DEQ run PM-10 TEOMS and BAMS and PM2.5 BAMS, NWS ASOS visibility monitors, and USFS remote access Nephelometers and BAMS .
This morning's smoke report is below, comparing particulate levels where we have information to MDEQ's Forest Fire health advisory levels.
Updated 10:00 AM September 6, 2005
Locations and severity of forest fire smoke reports since midnight of the date above at reporting stations.
| Smoke Conditions | City |
|---|---|
| Hazardous | |
| Very Unhealthy | |
| Unhealthy | Darby/Philipsburg (est) |
| Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | |
| Moderate | Butte T24 (8) |
| Good | |
|
T1(x) |
One-hour TEOM value (number of values) |
| T8(x) | Eight-hour average TEOM value(number of values) |
| T24 | 24 hour average TEOM value |
| Vis(x) | Visibility value(number of hours) |
| Vis(am/pm) | Visibility value from twice/day reporting stations |
Local impacts in areas immediately adjacent to active fires are expected to exceed some or all of the advisory levels. DEQ recommends the use of local visibility guidelines to evaluate possible health risks and make informed activity decisions. Link to Smoke Categories.
Forecast
This should be a pretty quiet day on most of the active fires. Wind speeds will be less and temperatures are off to a cold start. Transport winds will be from the southwest, this will continue to push smoke into the Darby, Phillipsburg and Butte areas. Smoke will be mixing down to the surface under the plume aloft and will likely be noticeable through the middle of the state by late afternoon. Residents in areas with smoke impacts should use the visibility guidelines as the situation changes.
John Coefield
Meteorologist
MDEQ
