Residents in Greater Victoria may notice hazy skies and a smoky smell in the air on Friday and into the weekend as wildfire smoke drifts over from the United States.
According to FireSmoke.ca, much of the smoke covering the region comes from wildfires burning near Olympia and Tacoma in Washington State.
Additional haze is also expected from wildfires in mainland BC.
Forecast models show that smoke concentrations will increase on Friday evening and continue through Saturday before starting to clear later in the weekend.
“Summer temperatures and smoky skies are expected to hit Greater Victoria this weekend, including today, becoming more intense late this evening,” the agency said.
The FireSmoke.ca interactive program displays hourly and daily averages of PM2.5 particles, which are fine inhalable matter with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less. These levels are expected to rise across Vancouver Island.
By Saturday afternoon, smoke is likely to cover much of the island, with concentrations gradually decreasing into next week.
Meanwhile, the BC provincial air quality index shows that while fine particulate levels are set to increase, they are expected to stay in the “low risk” category through Tuesday night.
For the latest forecasts and updates on the air quality health index, residents can visit the provincial air quality site.
