Out-of-control Canadian wildfires sending smoke into Upper Midwest prompt air quality alerts
MINNEAPOLIS – Extreme wildfires burning in Canada and prompting evacuations are now impacting the U.s., as weather systems will cause smoke to drift southward into areas of Minnesota and Wisconsin in the Upper Midwest late this week.
More than 160 wildfires across Canada have burned more than 1.6 million acres. Fast-moving fires across Saskatchewan and Manitoba triggered evacuations this week.
How Is Air Quality Measured?
The fires in Manitoba prompted provincial officials to issue a state of emergency.
"This is the largest evacuation in many Manitobans' living memory, and this will require significant resources and co-operation from all levels of government," Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew said. "I have spoken with the prime minister, and we have asked for the support of the Canadian Armed Forces in transporting evacuees. There are hundreds of people who are mobilized to get you to safety and provide help. This is what Manitobans do, and we will get through this."
The FOX Forecast Center is tracking smoke across the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes through Friday evening. Wildfire smoke will drift over cities including Duluth and Minneapolis in Minnesota and Green Bay and Milwaukee in Wisconsin. The Dakotas will also experience some smoke. By Friday night, smoke could move down into Illinois, including Chicago.
Air quality alerts are in effect for parts of the Upper Midwest, including areas west of Lake Superior to the Canadian border.
The air quality in the Arrowhead of Minnesota is forecast to reach red, or unhealthy, on the air quality index.
According to the National Weather Service, the smoke will drift southeastward with an area of high pressure beginning Thursday morning and could linger near Lake Superior into Friday morning.
On Friday, another round of heavy smoke from wildfires will likely descend into Minnesota behind a cold front.
The situation this week will be less hazardous than what Canada and the northern U.S. experienced nearly two years ago during a devastating Canadian wildfire season.
In June 2023, the wildfires in Canada turned the skies across the Northeast orange and reduced air quality to hazardous – the most extreme rating on the air quality index – for major cities, including New York City, Philadelphia and Washington. The dramatic scene made Manhattan look like a Martian landscape.
However, this likely won't be the last wildfire smoke from Canada to reach the U.S. this year. Canada's wildfire season is most active from May through September.Original article source: Out-of-control Canadian wildfires sending smoke into Upper Midwest prompt air quality alerts
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