Nanaimo residents woke up to smoky skies on Friday, Sept. 15, with smoke clearly visible from Cottle Hill overlooking north Nanaimo and Nanoose Bay. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Jordan Davidson

smokey skies

Unpleasant smoky sky surprise for Vancouver Islanders

Sep 15, 2023 | 1:46 PM

NANAIMO — Mid-Island residents woke up to the smell of smoke in the air Friday morning as wildfires continue burning across North America.

Smoke from wildfires in Strathcona Provincial Park, the Lower Mainland, and even from Washington State combined to creep their way toward Vancouver Island.

Gail Roth, air quality meteorologist with provincial ministry of environment, said the smoke over the mid-Island is being added to by different fires in the region.

Roth said the Nanaimo area has not been included in the Sept. 15 Smoky Skies Bulletin because they don’t expect the smoky conditions to last very long on the mid-Island.

“There is smoke in the area but not high enough levels or levels expecting to persist for long enough to turn that bulletin on…This should clear up through the afternoon and we aren’t expecting it to persist through tonight into tomorrow.”

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Roth said it’s a bit of a complicated weather story for Friday, as cooler overnight weather, shifting winds, and wildfire conditions all play a factor in which way the wind, and wildfire smoke, blow.

“It’s hard to tell exactly which fires it’s coming from, but there’s fire to the north of (Nanaimo) that’s probably being brought down the coast there, as well overnight there’s been a bit of drainage out of inlets over Sechelt, and it’s sort of wafted over to the Nanaimo area as well.”

Nanaimo’s air quality index was at a level two Friday morning around 9:00 a.m. but jumped to a three by 10:00 a.m., which is when the smoke was expected to be the most severe on Friday around the mid-Island.

Both levels are still in the low-risk category according to the air quality index, and levels are expected to remain in the low-risk category through Saturday night.

Wildfire smoke from Washington state can be seen snaking it’s way north towards Vancouver Island Friday morning around 10 a.m. The smoke is expected to dissipate by Friday evening. (Firesmoke.ca)

Roth told NanaimoNewsNOW it can be difficult to accurately predict where wildfire smoke will appear and how dense it’ll be, with weather trends obviously playing a big factor.

“Depending on if you’re in a valley or a more coastal area, it can impact the behaviours as to whether the smoke stays trapped near the surface, but then of course how windy it is will dictate if that smoke moves along or how quickly it moves along.”

While the smoke over the mid-Island is expected to fade as Friday shifts into Saturday, winds might see more smoke appear in other parts of the province this weekend, Roth noted.

A state of emergency imposed by the province due to the wildfires expired on Thursday, Sept. 14, after being declared on Aug. 18.

A state of emergency is still in effect for the Stikine region in northwestern B.C. to allow the Province to maintain the evacuation order in the area recommended by the BC Wildfire Service on Aug. 26.

As of Friday afternoon, there were still at least 26 wildfires burning on Vancouver Island, 14 of which are still marked as out-of-control, ranging in size from under a hectare, to the 2,320-hectare Mount Con Reid fire in Strathcona Provincial Park.

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jordan@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @JordanDHeyNow