2006 Forest Fire Air Quality Updates
September 11, 2006
10:00 AM
Current Situation
Smoke levels across the state have improved dramatically since yesterday as a frontal system pushed the smoke off to the east and mostly out of the state. Smoke is starting to edge into northwestern Montana this morning from the fires in Washington and British Columbia. Heavy smoke can be seen trapped in valleys of central Idaho this morning and of that smoke will move into southwest Montana later today. Dispersion in most of the valleys of western Montana will be very poor and inversions will likely persist through the day. This should keep most of the smoke aloft off the surface but for those areas like the Swan Valley with local fires, smoke will be a problem today. See the forecast below for details. Residents near the active fires in the state 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 11, 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 | Missoula T8 Great Falls Vis(2) Bozeman Vis(1) Swan Valley (est) |
|
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
The Big Sky will be clear and blue today in most areas as the persistent residual smoke we have been living with for the past week has finally moved on. Fire activity in our regions was MODERATE in most areas yesterday and we only have a few local valleys that will have smoke issues today. The valleys west of the divide should not mix out today and smoke will persist in the valleys with active fires. East of the divide, dispersion will be a little better and most valleys should mix out. Smoke from the fires west of Montana will move into the state today and western Montana could get hazy for a while this afternoon. The next two days will be warm and dry, fire levels and smoke production are expected to increase and local impacts will be an issue again. Change is on the way late in the week as a potential “season ending” event is forecast into the state by the weekend. For today, 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
