“Worst wildfire smoke so far”: Special air quality statements blanket the province

Smokey skies are covering the province with a campfire like smell.

Special air quality statements are in effect for almost all of the province, expect for the southwestern corner.

Dan Fulton, a meteorologist with Environment Canada, said this is one of the days with the thickest smoke in the province so far this wildfire season.

“The worst wildfire smoke so far of the summer is blanketing pretty much all of Saskatchewan, and indeed almost all of the prairies,” said Fulton. “The smoke is from fires northern B.C. and the Northwest Territories.”

Fulton cautioned people to be careful while driving because visibility is very poor. Visibility in Regina this morning was three miles in the smoke, but going north to places like Meadow Lake, visibility is only a quarter mile in the smoke.

The smoke is expected to stick around for the rest of the of the long weekend.

“For southern Saskatchewan there might be a little bit of improvement today, or perhaps this evening as winds kind of push the worst of it out,” said Fulton. “But then it kind of comes back again tomorrow as the winds change to the north again.

“I guess the best advice I could say is that the smoke is going to be around for well into next week.”

The Air Quality Index is at high risk levels hitting as high as 11 in Saskatoon, and 10 in Regina. Fulton suggested that people who are at risk reduce their exposure to the smoke.