Some Utahns got some relief Monday afternoon from the smoke that has been plaguing the state — but only those in the southernmost parts of the state.
Unhealthy pollution will continue to smother northern and central Utah until midweek, according to the National Weather Service.
As of 8 a.m. on Monday, Salt Lake City was No. 5 on the list of cities with the worst air quality in the world, according to IQAir.com, and had the worst air of any U.S. city.
(IQAir.com) Salt Lake City has some of the worst air quality in the world.
The Utah Department of Environmental Quality warned that, because of PM 2.5 particulates, the air in Salt Lake, Tooele, Duchesne, Weber and Box Elder counties was in the orange zone early Monday (unhealthy for sensitive groups), and the levels are expected to rise into the red zone (unhealthy for everyone) later in the day. A cold front is moving across northern and central Utah, bringing more smoke from West Coast wildfires to Utah.
PM 2.5 refers to tiny particles less than 2.5 microns in diameter — too small to be filtered out by your nose. They can cause a variety of health problems.
Among the wildfires sending smoke Utah’s way is the massive Dixie Fire in northwestern California, which, as of Monday morning, has burned about half a million acres and is 2% contained.
On Monday, 22 Utah firefighters, five engines and several support vehicles headed to California to help battle the blaze. Personnel from the Unified Fire Authority, Wasatch County Sheriff’s Office, and the Provo, Draper, Cedar City, Murray, Orem and West Valley City fire departments will spend 14 days fighting the Dixie Fire.
(National Weather Service) Smoke will remain across northern and central Utah on Monday and Tuesday.
There may be good news on the horizon: the National Weather Service is forecasting clearing skies over Utah on Wednesday.
In Salt Lake City, temperatures were forecast in the upper 80s on Monday, down about 10 degrees from Sunday. But the forecast calls for the heat to rise through the week — 90 on Tuesday, 93 on Wednesday, 95 on Thursday, 97 on Friday.
The air quality was good in St. George on Monday morning, although some patchy smoke was expected. It is expected to be clear and hot — temperatures in the low to mid-100s — through Friday.
