The wildfire smoke clouding the region's skies is expected to hang in for a while. And hoping for the wind to change direction is a false hope... because so many fires are burning, the smoke can come from several directions.
Rogue Valley residents might have assumed the soupy skies of Friday morning came from the Hendrix Fire burning in the Siskiyous southwest of Ashland. But the Oregon Department of Forestry says the smoke column that settled in early in the day came from the Grave #3 Fire, part of the Garner Complex burning northwest of Medford.
And it made a mess of the air. Friday morning readings showed air quality in the Unhealthy level in Medford, Ashland, Happy Camp, and Yreka.
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality declared an air quality alert "until further notice" but amended it later Friday to sunset at 11 AM Monday (July 23rd). But that's only an estimate, and the end time could be extended if smoke is still hanging around.
The National Weather Service forecasts a 20% chance of thunderstorms returning on Sunday. Most of the fires currently burning started from lightning strikes on Sunday, July 15th.