Thick wildfire smoke causes dangerous air quality in the Northwest

Air quality levels reached the very unhealthy category in eastern Washington Monday morning as wildfires in the area coated the Northwest with dangerous smoke.

Massive wildfires in eastern Washington and other parts of the region are causing dangerous air quality in much of the Pacific Northwest and northern Rockies.

As the sun rose Monday morning, satellites showed a massive area of smoke stretching from Washington, Oregon and Utah eastward into Montana, Wyoming and northwestern Colorado.

AccuWeather's Air Quality maps showed "very unhealthy" air quality in these areas, with pockets of "dangerous" air quality in northeastern Washington.

In Spokane, the AQI was 218, and an Air Quality Alert was issued. Air quality will remain very unhealthy in the city through Tuesday night.

At that level, health effects will be immediately felt by sensitive groups, who should avoid outdoor activity. Healthy individuals are likely to experience difficulty breathing and throat irritation. Residents in areas with very unhealthy AQI should stay indoors and reschedule outdoor activities.

As the fires continue this week, the smoke will remain over the Northwest, northern Rockies and southwestern Canada through the week.

"The thickest smoke is forecast across Washington, Oregon and Idaho through midweek, reducing air quality in cities like Spokane, Portland and Seattle." AccuWeather Meteorologist Breanna Grill says. Poor air quality will also extend southward into Nevada and Utah.

Outside of the dangerous air quality, the smoke can cause hazy conditions across northern portions of the Plains and into the central Rockies, including Rapid City, Denver, and even as far east as Minneapolis this week, Grill added.

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