Canada's wildfire impact on Mid-Michigan

By Claire Cameron

Saginaw, MI (WNEM) -- Did you notice an orange tinge to the setting sun last night? Or as you stepped outside this afternoon did you think it was a little hazy? That's the smoke from the wildfires in Canada.

Wildfires in Alberta, Canada have become extreme. The fire near Fort McMurray has been classified as "out of control" by the Alberta Agriculture and Forestry website. 

NASA posted a picture of the fire at Fort McMurray showing the how large the wildfire has become. The fires in Canada pose no threat to us here in Michigan, but we are seeing some of the smoke. The National Weather Service in Detroit and Grand Rapids both posted pictures of the haze we are seeing due to the fires.

The fires in Canada are producing huge smoke plumes, and as smoke rises it thins out. But, the smoke particles get trapped in the upper atmosphere and the winds carry the smoke. The smoke is very high up in the atmosphere and there are no health risks are associated with it.

According to the DEQ all of Michigan air quality is good, and no changes to the quality are expected in the near future. The smoke is too high up to negatively affect us.

Really all we will notice is a little haze outside.

You may have mistaken the haze for thin cirrus clouds. Not everyone in Mid-Michigan is seeing the haze from the wildfires, if you go out and see a bit of a gray/white tinge to the once-blue sky, that's the smoke.

The sky will remain mostly clear Friday, and we will still enjoy an ample dose of Vitamin D. The smoke shouldn't cut into our sun, just a little bit of white mixed in with our blue due to those smoke particles high up in the atmosphere.