Weather It Matters: Smoky skies will be part of future forecasts in Michiana

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- There’s something in the air over Michiana.  Unsettling amounts of smoke have been settling in the sky, a problem that peaked during the summer of 2023. 
Who can forget the otherworldly images of an orange New York City skyline? Two years ago, thanks to wildfire smoke, South Bend recorded its worst air quality on record.   And every summer since, smoky skies have shown up, keeping many inside and sending doctor visits soaring. 
Dr. Christina Barnes is an allergist at the South Bend Clinic and has been in the field for nearly 20 years. 
“We definitely are seeing upticks in people who are having asthma flares during these times, Barnes explained. 
I asked Dr. Barnes if she had ever seen anything like this before. 
“No, really, I haven't," Barnes said. “I mean, it's definitely new in the last few years. A lot of patients now, when we see the air quality alerts, they're really noticing it a lot more.”  

Dr. Barnes said patients breathing in wildfire smoke might experience coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath, itchy eyes, and fatigue.  
“Young children and the elderly certainly are at risk, Barnes explained, “as are pregnant women, and then people who have heart and lung problems already, including people who have asthma or COPD.” 

The smoke affecting the air quality at the South Bend sensor is coming from large wildfires spread across Canada, some more than one thousand miles away from Michiana.   I spoke with scientists in Canada about what makes the wildfires up north so difficult to tame. 
Chelene Hanes is a research scientist with the Canadian Forest Service, specializing in wildfire behavior. 
She points to the record-setting summer of 2023 being a turning point for Canadian wildfires, when more than 36 million acres burned. That is basically the size of Illinois.  

This year’s fires are on another blistering pace, with more than 19 million acres burned, equivalent to more than 80 percent of the size of Indiana. 
“Fire managers do an amazing job, but there's only so much they can do,” Hanes explained. 
“We have fires on both coasts in areas where fire is typically rare, but we're having fires more commonly, particularly this year,” Hanes added. 
Some might question why Canadian officials and firefighters aren't doing more to fight these fires. Taming these blazes isn't as easy as it sounds.  
“When fires are small, the tools in the toolbox for fire managers are greater, but as the fires become extremely intense and large, those tools drastically reduce,” Hanes explained, “and there are limited things that can be done.”  
“And at some point, you know, fires become something you know, move from something manageable to something that becomes a natural disaster.” 

Two more factors complicating Canadian firefighting efforts are population density and land type. 
“Our population density is really more like the state of South Dakota,” Hanes described. “We don’t have a lot of people, but we do have a larger area. And the majority of the people in Canada live along the US border.” 
“So we get these high-intensity fires in areas where we don't have people, and the forests have evolved around fire,” Hanes continued. “There's not much that can be done to suppress a fire like that, especially when there's no value, because there are no people in that region.” 
I asked Hanes if smoky skies and long wildfire seasons are things that we all need to adapt to as the new normal. 
“Unfortunately, I think it is the new normal,” Hanes concluded. “We're not seeing any significant decreases; if anything, things seem to be continuing along that increasing trend. So that doesn't look good.” 

Hanes told me that typically Canada’s wildfire season wraps up in September, but there is some concern that due to the current drought, it could linger longer into the fall. 

Dr. Barnes with the South Bend Clinic also agrees that health risks from wildfires will be a problem going forward. She said staying inside during the poorest air quality times, using HEPA filters, and employing N95 masks can help lessen the effects of smoke in the air.