The Salmon and Challis areas were in the Moderate air quality yesterday, while all other areas of the state remained in the Good air quality range. Several fires continue to burn in Southeast and central Oregon as well as 9 new fires starting last night in Elmore County. For additional information on fires in Idaho and neighboring states visit www.inciweb.org.
Air quality in Idaho is forecasted to remain in the Good air quality for most of the state today, except the Treasure Valley, Salmon, and Challis, which are forecasted to be in the Moderate range.
Southern Idaho will continue to see light to moderate smoke impacts from fires in Oregon and the fires near Fairfield and in Elmore County. The Grangeville area may experience light smoke impacts due to smoke from the fires burning in the central Idaho Mountains. Areas north of fires will experience light smoke impacts, while areas near the fires will continue to experience light to moderate smoke impacts during the nighttime and early morning hours; however, during the day, any wildfire smoke in the valleys should mix out.
4 emergency monitors have been installed in Idaho to help monitor smoke impacts from wildfires:
· DEQ installed a monitor in Challis for the Lodgepole fire. The information can be found at http://app.airsis.com/USFS/ Choose monitor #Idaho1004
· The USFS installed monitors in Lowman, Atlanta, and Challis. The information can be found at http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/smoke.pl
o Lowman monitor is Smoke#19
o Atlanta monitor is Smoke#13
o Challis monitor is Smoke#21 – co-located with DEQ’s monitor
o Users should be aware that the Forest Service site reports the data in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). To convert from UTS to Mountain Daylight Time, subtract 6 hours.
View DEQ near-real time monitoring at: http://airquality.deq.idaho.gov/
Smoke forecasts are dependent on predicted fire growth and weather. If conditions change unexpectedly, impacts could occur. Communities nearby active fires may experience periods of air quality which are Moderate (visibility of 6-10 miles). When visibility starts to go below 5 miles, sensitive groups should minimize outdoor activities. Everyone else should minimize prolonged or physical activity outdoors. Refer to the Smoke and Health Tab on the Idaho Smoke Information Blog for additional health information.
Your eyes are your best tools to determine if it’s safe to be outside. Even if you smell smoke, the air quality may still be good.
| AQI Category | Visibility (miles) |
| Good | 11+ |
| Moderate | 6-10 |
| Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 3-5 |
| Unhealthy | 1½ -2¾ |
| Very Unhealthy | 1-1¼ |
| Hazardous | Less than 1 |
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