In US, West Coast burns and East Coast chokes
PORTLAND, Oregon — Smoke and ash from massive wildfires in the US West clouded the sky and led to air quality alerts on parts of the East Coast on Wednesday as the effects of the blaze were felt more than 4,000 kilometers away.
Strong winds blew smoke east from California, Oregon, Montana and other states all the way to other side of the continent. Haze hung over New York City, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
Almost 80 large wildfires are now burning across the US. The largest — eastern Oregon’s Bootleg Fire — has grown to 1,600 square kilometers.
The smoke blowing to the East Coast was reminiscent of last fall, when large fires burning in Oregon’s worst wildfire season in recent memory choked the local sky with pea-soup smoke but also affected air quality several thousand miles away. This year, Seattle and Portland have so far been largely spared from the foul air.
People in parts of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and elsewhere with heart disease, asthma and other health issues were told to avoid the outdoors. Air quality alerts for parts of the region were in place through Thursday.
“One of the things about this event that makes it so remarkable is that the smoke is affecting such a large swath of the US,” said Jesse Berman, an assistant professor at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health and an expert on air quality. “You’re not just seeing localized and perhaps upstate New York being affected, but rather you’re seeing numerous states all along the East Coast that are being impacted.”
David Lawrence, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said wildfire smoke usually thins out by the time it reaches the East Coast, but this summer it is “still pretty thick”.
Wide scope
The Tamarack Fire south of Lake Tahoe had burned more than 176 square kilometers of timber and head-high chaparral in national forest land. It erupted on July 4 and was one of nearly two dozen blazes sparked by lightning. Authorities said more than 1,200 firefighters are battling the blaze, which has destroyed at least 10 structures.
On Wednesday, Oregon banned all campfires on state-managed lands and in state campgrounds east of Interstate 5, the major highway that is commonly considered the dividing line between the wet western part of the state and the dry eastern half.
The regulation includes the designated fire rings at campsites, as well as candles and tiki torches. Propane grills are still allowed, but the state still urged campers to pack food that does not require heating or cooking.
At least 2,000 homes have been evacuated at some point during the fire and an additional 5,000 threatened. At least 70 homes and more than 100 outbuildings have burned.
Extremely dry conditions and recent heat waves tied to climate change have made wildfires harder to fight. Climate change has made the West much warmer and drier in the past 30 years and will continue to make wildfires more frequent and more destructive.