Mainly sunny skies faded into smoke-filled air on Wednesday in northeastern Montana, prompting locals to stay indoors as air quality dipped into unhealthy territory due to Canadian wildfires.
Both Sidney and Glendive monitoring stations reported air quality indexes (AQI) of 190 and 193, respectively. The Montana Department of Environmental Quality (MTDEQ) indicates unhealthy air quality when AQI readings range from 151 to 200. Levels above 201 enter the “very unhealthy” zone, where health risks escalate.
As a precaution, the National Weather Service (NWS) office in Glasgow issued a dense smoke advisory through 6 p.m. local time. The advisory noted that strong winds could also create hazardous conditions on area lakes.
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“Wildfire smoke impacts health, and strong winds are leading to rough lake conditions,” the advisory stated.
According to a recent update from NWS Glasgow on X (formerly Twitter), visibility dropped to 1 to 3 miles in some areas due to the smoke, but conditions were expected to improve later that afternoon with a cold front moving in.
Smoke from wildfires has overtaken NE MT, and a reduction down to 1 to 3 mile visibility is occurring in a few locations. This is leading to unhealthy air quality, but smoke will clear out with a north to south moving cold front this afternoon/evening. #mtwx pic.twitter.com/LJTa9MKDQ7
— NWS Glasgow (@NWSGlasgow) September 4, 2024
The NWS Glasgow urged the public to avoid burning debris and keep windows shut to limit indoor pollution. It’s also recommended to skip candles, which further contribute to air quality issues.
Fortunately, most of MTDEQ’s monitoring stations in western Montana reported moderate air quality, with the Hamilton station noted as “unhealthy for sensitive groups.” However, Maliawco cautioned that haze and smoke could re-emerge by the weekend due to ongoing wildfires.