On Wednesday, along with today (Thursday), the Drumheller Valley has been extremely smoky.
Some may believe it is from forest fires to the west of us. That is not the case according to Stingray Weather Specialist Brandon Houck. “We have the fires up into the Northwest Territories and the northern parts of Alberta. We had this cold front slice down from the Northwest Territories in the last 24 hours and that switched the winds from the north. When you have a northerly flow, that allows all the smoke drift down to Central and Southern Alberta.”
The smoke forecast for Thursday at 5 PM shows our area covered in smoke; Image courtesy of FireSmoke.ca
Thursday should be the worst of it according to Houck. “Probably not as concentrated tomorrow (Friday) as we are going to see a switch to the southeast from the north, so that will push some of that smoke out.”
With the smoky conditions, limit outdoor activities reassures Houck. “Limit outdoor activities, especially if you have health problems. If you feel your eyes are watering or your nose or throat getting scratchy, that is probably a sign to take a break from being outside.”
The smoke can also slightly affect the temperatures. “It can depending on how thick the smoke is,” shares Houck. “We’ve had times where we have had some very thick smoke and it hasn’t really impacted temperatures as UV radiation can still get through. It will probably keep the temperatures not as hot today as the last couple of days but will probably return to the heat next week as we clear out the smoke.”
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