LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Although there were no new wildland fires in Lake County on Tuesday, concerned residents reported seeing smoke and haze in the air basin.
Their senses weren’t deceiving them: a new intrusion of wildland fire smoke – this time from several states away – was coming into the area.
Lake County Pollution Control Officer Doug Gearhart said the source of the smoke is a major wildland fire in northern Idaho and parts of western Montana.
A NASA/MODIS satellite image posted above shows the smoke making its way down from Idaho, through Washington, Oregon and into Northern California.
The image shows that the smoke appears to be originating from the area of Idaho’s biggest wildland fire, the lightning-caused Mustang Complex in the Salmon-Challis National Forest, burning just over the Montana sate line.
On Tuesday the fire was at 336,744 acres, with 25 percent containment, according to the US Forest Service.
Gearhart the smoke from Idaho has been passing into the air basin for several days.
“It actually affected our air quality on Friday,” he said, noting that while it didn’t cause state health standards to be exceeded, particulate level was raised.
Lakeport Fire Chief Ken Wells, who confirmed to Lake County News that there were no reports of new fires in the county on Tuesday, also cited a pressure system moving over Northern California as a contributing factor to moving the smoke to the county.
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