Smoke is back: air quality deemed unhealthy for all groups

The smoke cloud from Oregon and California has arrived in Seattle, making the air quality index rise to unhealthy levels.

The AQI for Seattle today is 177, a level deemed unhealthy for all groups. Outdoor exercise isn’t recommended, and doors and windows should be shut.

Here's the forecast we've been dreading: A huge mass of smoke from wildfires in OR and CA has been building up off the coast. It's now headed our way. W. WA, SW WA, the Columbia Basin and Spokane will wake up to "unhealthy" air quality Friday. Forecast – https://t.co/IssTBsWkU9 pic.twitter.com/THDjf3VvUp
— WA Department of Ecology (@EcologyWA) September 10, 2020

The forecast is worse for Saturday: the AQI could go up to 246 according to predictions, a rating deemed “very unhealthy”.