Wildfires near Baker mean smoky skies for Whatcom. Here’s where air is unhealthful Saturday

Air quality has declined in Bellingham at the beginning of a hot, dry weekend as smoke from wildfires east of Mount Baker drifts toward lowland Whatcom County amid a “red flag warning” for fire danger and a burn ban.

Saturday morning, Sept. 10, air was unhealthy for sensitive groups in Bellingham and unhealthy in the Maple Falls area, according to the state Department of Ecology website. By 5 p.m., air was listed as very unhealthy in the Maple Falls area and Bellingham and the Custer area were listed as moderate.

Winds are carrying smoke from wildfires in British Columbia and Eastern Washington across Whatcom and Skagit counties, and air quality is expected to reach levels that are considered unhealthy for sensitive people.

That includes young children and older adults, and those with respiratory conditions such as asthma.

“The amount of smoke over the area will be dependent on how current fires behave as well as if there are any new fire starts,” said meteorologist Mary Butwin at the National Weather Service in Seattle.

Computer models from several forecasting agencies showed smoke over Northwest Washington starting early Friday, Sept. 9, and lasting until late Saturday, during a late summer heat spike. On Saturday, the National Weather Service update said smoke is now expected to linger through Sunday, Sept. 11.

“Near record highs are possible for Friday and Saturday with Saturday expected to be the hotter day,” Butwin said online.

Forecasts for Bellingham and lowland Whatcom County predict temperatures in the low- to mid-80s.

Record high for Saturday is 88, set in 1963.

Normal daytime high temperature is 70 degrees for early September, according to National Weather Service records.

Bellingham saw air quality dip to levels considered unhealthy for sensitive people on Thursday afternoon, Sept. 8, but improve to moderate levels of particulate matter (airborne smoke).

Air quality dropped from good to moderate around noon Friday in Bellingham, according to the Northwest Clean Air Agency, which imposed a burn ban.

Three locations east of Lake Whatcom were showing air quality readings that are considered unhealthy for sensitive people at 2:30 p.m. Friday, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s AirNow website.

“Outdoor burning is not allowed during a Stage 1 air quality burn ban. Home heating with fireplaces and uncertified wood stoves is also prohibited,” the agency said in a statement.

“The ban is expected to be elevated to Stage 2 as conditions worsen over the weekend. A Stage 2 ban would apply to agricultural burning and to recreational burning, including campfires and fire pits,” the agency said.

In addition, the timber company Sierra Pacific closed its forests and private logging roads in Whatcom and Skagit counties because of extreme fire conditions, a rare event on the west side of the Cascades.