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Air Monitoring Particulate Data

2006 Forest Fire Air Quality Updates

August 30, 2006
10:00 AM

Current Situation

Fire perimeters in Montana and Idaho increased by over 10,000 acres yesterday as hot dry winds produce large plumes of smoke that are working their way across the state today. Western and southwestern areas of Montana are socked in with lots of thick and acrid smoke this morning. Missoula, Helena, Butte and Dillon are at UNHEALTHY FOR SENSITIVE GROUPS this morning and may end up as UNHEALTHY for a while today. MODERATE levels are present in Whitefish, Kalispell, Hamilton, and Great Falls. Smoke levels are clearing from the northwest. Libby was UNHEALTHY FOR SENSITIVE GROUPS last night but is much clearer the last few hours. Clearer air is also coming in now in areas of southwest Montana. Smoke from the Derby fire south of Big Timber and another as yet unidentified fire southwest of Big Timber is very visible on this morning’s satellite photo. The plumes from these fires are being pushed off to the northeast and are crossing I-90 between Reedpoint and Laurel. Smoke levels should improve throughout the day in areas away from the active fires; see the forecast below for details. Local impacts could be severe today in the Big Timber area, residents there need to pay attention to current conditions and use the VISIBILITY GUIDELINES to determine smoke levels in their area and guide their activity decisions.

Morning satellite photo centered on Great Falls
large plumes of smoke are working their way across Montana today.

Wednesday, August 30, 2006, 4:21 PM - The Derby Mountain fire south of Big Timber has more than doubled in size since last night.  It is now 40,000 acres or more and I-90 has been closed due to smoke and nearby fire.  The wind is still blowing hard and many evacuations have been ordered.  This is a color satellite photo from Modis taken today (Aug 30 at 11:50 AM MDT)  The fire is putting up a huge plume of smoke that is missing Billings so far but is clearly impacting the area from Reedpoint to Laurel and is heading towards Roundup.  As the front passes, I expect a lot of smoke to come into Billings tonight.

The pictures below were taken about 5:30 PM on Wednesday, August 30, about 12 miles west of Big timber (click picture for larger view). The pictures of the fire are looking generally south from the interstate.  Photos taken by Mike Chapman.
picture of the fire near Billingspicture of the fire near Billingspicture of the fire near Billingspicture of the fire near Billings
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This morning’s analysis from NOAA's satellite services division shows the active fires in Montana and the smoke plumes combining and spreading downwind (the analyzed smoke is based on yesterday’s satellite coverage, the fire detects are based on last nights satellite coverage)

NOAA satellite image
Red indicates hot spot detected. Grey represents smoke seen by satellite. Fire size is exaggerated for visibility at this scale. To identify individual fires on graphic above go here: http://activefiremaps.fs.fed.us/lg_fire2.php

Real time particulate information is currently available in most of the larger urban areas from several different sources including: DEQ run PM-10 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. Smoke Categories

Updated 10:00 AM August 30, 2006

Locations and severity of forest fire smoke reports since midnight of the date above at reporting stations.

Smoke Conditions City
Hazardous  
Very Unhealthy  
Unhealthy  
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups Missoula T8
Helena T8
Butte T8
Dillon Vis(5)
Moderate Kalispell T8
Hamilton T8
Great Falls Vis(1)
Whitefish
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.

Forecast

Transport winds will continue from the southwest today ahead of the trough over Washington that will move over Montana later today. This will bring clearing from north to south in western Montana. The center of the plume of residual smoke from the fires in Idaho yesterday will work its way out of the state to the northeast by this afternoon. Good mixing will bring parts of the plume to the surface and local smoke impacts will be noticeable under the thickest parts of the plume through the day. More smoke is expected from Idaho later this afternoon into western and southwestern Montana and may cause problems tomorrow depending on the fire behavior this afternoon. South central and central Montana will be impacted by the fires south of Big Timber throughout the day. Red Flag warnings are posted for more wind today and new fire activity could cause severe local impacts. Residents near active fires are strongly cautioned to stay aware of local conditions and use the visibility guidelines to guide their activity decisions as the situation changes.

John Coefield
Meteorologist
MDEQ