2006 Forest Fire Air Quality Updates
September 10, 2006
10:00 AM
Current Situation
MODERATE levels of smoke are being recorded in many areas today but generally the smoke levels have decreased as the cooler, wetter weather yesterday slowed the fires in most locations. We still haven’t had much net flow out of the state and the dispersion is still limited but with the showers and clouds some of the smoke has been scrubbed out of the atmosphere. A light westerly flow will bring some smoke into the state today, see the forecast below for details. Residents should pay attention to conditions in their area and use the VISIBILITY GUIDELINES to determine smoke levels in their area and guide their activity decisions through the day as conditions change.
Morning satellite photo centered on Great Falls
WeatherBug web cam photo of Livingston, MT 59047 by Pat Gilligan
DEQ web cam facing north towards the "Sleeping Giant" mountain
MODIS Active Fire Mapping Program
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).
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 September 10, 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 | Active Fire area (est) |
| Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | |
| Moderate | Whitefish T8 Kalispell T8 Missoula T8 Hamilton T24 Helena T8 |
|
T1(x) |
One-hour TEOM value (number of values) |
| T8(x)) | Eight-hour average TEOM value (number of values) |
| T244 | 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
Westerly winds will bring some smoke from the fires in Idaho, Washington and Oregon our way today. The smoke hanging over the Front Range should start to move out to the east but smoke from the Rival Nanny Complex may impact the Choteau area if it remains active today. Dispersion will still be limited as high pressure builds back into the area. Smoke trapped in the valleys near the active fires will moderate a little this afternoon but increased fire activity as the inversions lift may still produce UNHEALTHY impacts or worse in those locations. Residents are cautioned to check their local conditions using the visibility guidelines to guide their activity decisions as the situation changes.
John Coefield
Meteorologist
MDEQ
