Eastern Washington is experiencing some of its worst air quality in years as smoke from the Lyons Ferry Fire and other active wildfires blankets the region. The Spokane metropolitan area recorded Air Quality Index (AQI) values as high as 315 on Friday morning, July 17 — placing conditions firmly in the hazardous category on the 0–500 scale.

Current Air Quality Conditions

The Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency is tracking smoke from multiple fires burning across eastern Washington and northeastern Oregon. The Lyons Ferry Fire, along with the Neff Jones Fire, Chelan Hills Fire, B and O Fire, and Kaiser Canyon Fire, are all contributing to the thick smoke blanket over the region.

Air Quality Alerts are currently in effect for the following counties through at least Sunday morning:

  • Spokane County
  • Adams County
  • Whitman County
  • Lincoln County

Additional counties may be added to the alert zone as smoke patterns evolve. Residents should monitor the Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency website and fire.airnow.gov for real-time updates.

Health Recommendations

Hazardous air quality poses serious health risks for everyone, not just those with pre-existing respiratory conditions. At AQI levels above 300, even healthy individuals can experience significant health effects from short exposure. Health officials recommend:

  • Stay indoors as much as possible with windows and doors closed
  • Run an air purifier with a HEPA filter if available
  • Avoid all strenuous outdoor activity — exercise indoors instead
  • Wear a properly fitted N95 or KN95 mask if you must go outside
  • Keep pets indoors and limit their outdoor time
  • Check on neighbors, especially elderly individuals and those with respiratory or cardiovascular conditions
  • Do not rely on surgical masks or cloth coverings — they do not filter fine smoke particles

What to Expect

The Washington Smoke Blog indicates that wind patterns through the weekend favor onshore flow from the Pacific Ocean, which will help keep western Washington and the Cascades in relatively good air quality. However, areas to the north and east of existing fires in eastern Washington and Oregon will continue to experience periods of dense smoke through Sunday.

Some improvement is possible in the Spokane area Saturday afternoon if wind shifts occur, but conditions are expected to remain in the unhealthy to very unhealthy range for most of the weekend. Exact smoke concentrations will depend heavily on wind direction changes.

Resources

  • Air quality monitoring: fire.airnow.gov
  • Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency: spokanecleanair.org
  • Washington Dept. of Ecology Air Monitoring: ecology.wa.gov
  • Cooling centers: contact Spokane County at (509) 477-2264