Hazy days of summer
Smoke from forest fires pushing down air quality health index
Raging wildfires around the province have caused a heavy blanket of smoke to settle in the Okanagan Valley. The smoke covering Kelowna is likely from the Princeton fire, the closest major fire to Kelowna, said Tracy Wynnyk, fire information officer with the Kamloops Fire Centre Tuesday morning.
“Keep in mind, there are fires all over the province, and smoke can travel in the atmosphere for long distances,” said Wynnyk.
As of Tuesday, the Princeton fire was zero per cent contained at 2,700 hectares.
It is difficult to say how long the smoke will last, said Wynnyk.
“It all depends on what the winds are doing and how much smoke is in the atmosphere.”
Environment Canada issued a special air quality advisory for the Okanagan as a result of the heavy smoke.
On Tuesday, the air quality health index in the Central Okanagan was rated as high risk, or seven on a scale of 10.
“The air quality health index takes into account several pollutants,” said Alyssa Charbonneau, meteorologist with Environment Canada.
“The higher the air quality health index, the greater risk it poses to health. We’ll definitely be keeping a close eye on things.”
Environment Canada is forecasting another smoky day today, with a high of 31 C.
“If smoke is heavy enough, it could help to keep temperatures a degree or two cooler,” said Charbonneau. “With that in mind, we are still expecting temperatures to be in the low-30s this week.”
Across Interior Health, there have been people attending hospitals with breathing concerns due to smoke from the wildfires, said Tara Gostelow, spokesperson for IH.
To help people get out of the smoke, Kelowna’s Gospel Mission has opened up its 24/7 emergency shelter.
“Normally when it’s nice out, we close for a couple of hours in the morning and in the afternoon to clean up,” said Randy Benson, executive director.
However, the thick smoke and the air quality advisory prompted the Gospel Mission to keep its doors open, he said.
“It’s the same thing we do in our cold weather protocol or when it’s really hot,” said Benson. “Anytime the weather is a possible danger or hazard to our guests, we want to open up our doors so they can get inside if need be.”
Several people have been complaining about difficulty breathing, headaches and eye irritation, he said.
“They appreciate that they can get into some air conditioning and clean air.”
There are 84 beds available for men and 16 beds for women.
In the last few weeks, the Gospel Mission has been running at 80 per cent capacity.