MYNORTHWEST NEWS

Air quality to worsen as smoke returns

Aug 19, 2018, 12:04 PM | Updated: 10:12 pm

Forecasters are warning of unhealthy air for parts of the Pacific Northwest as winds push smoke from surrounding wildfires into the region.

The National Weather Service in Seattle has issued air quality alerts for much of Washington state.

The NWS says air quality in Western Washington is expected to worsen. Some improvement is expected by Wednesday.

An air quality alert is also in place across Eastern Washington and North Idaho. Forecasters say smoke from fires in British Columbia is expected to drift into Washington and Idaho, causing unhealthy air levels through Tuesday.

Officials say air quality over the area is poor because of smoke from wildfires and terrain that traps smoke in valleys.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

MyNorthwest News

Moses lake starbucks crash...

Jason Sutich

Driver ‘screwing around’ crashes truck into Moses Lake Starbucks, at least 1 injured

A man drove a pickup truck into the drive-through of a Moses Lake Starbucks on Saturday, causing significant damage to the coffee shop and his vehicle.

3 minutes ago

snohomish standoff fire knife...

Jason Sutich

Suspect allegedly held knife to residents, set house on fire in Snohomish County standoff

A man was arrested in Snohomish County after he allegedly held a knife against residents of a home, barricaded himself inside, and set the house on fire.

50 minutes ago

power outage peninsula fire...

KIRO 7 News Staff

Power restored to 22K as Peninsula Light Company reports ‘Majority Territory Outage’ due to fire

Almost 23,000 Peninsula Light Company customers were without power on Sunday due to a fire response.

2 hours ago

yakima...

KIRO 7 News Staff

Yakima man sentenced for murder of Yakama Nation man

Antonio Montellano, 44, was sentenced to more than 25 years in prison for the murder of a Yakama Nation man in January 2025.

2 hours ago

e-bike...

Tim Hohl

Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital on pace to double e-bike injuries among kids this year

Mary Bridge Children's Hospital said it's on pace to more than double last year's number of children treated for e-bike and e-scooter trauma injuries.

2 hours ago

shooting seattle center...

Frank Sumrall

3 dead, 4 injured in Seattle Center shooting during Bite of Seattle event

Three people were killed and another four were injured in a shooting at Seattle Center Sunday evening, SPD confirmed.

12 hours ago

Air quality to worsen as smoke returns