Canadian wildfires causing hazy skies in Columbus area and Ohio Valley

Taijuan Moorman, The Columbus Dispatch
Updated ·3 min read
In this aerial image, an aircraft, center, flies near a wildfire burning near Barrington Lake in Shelburne County, Nova Scotia, on Wednesday, May 31, 2023.
In this aerial image, an aircraft, center, flies near a wildfire burning near Barrington Lake in Shelburne County, Nova Scotia, on Wednesday, May 31, 2023.

It's another hazy morning in Columbus as smoke from wildfires in Canada continues to drift into the U.S., and the Ohio Valley especially.

Fires in the eastern Canadian province of Nova Scotia prompted air quality warnings over the weekend in U.S., with a forest fire in New Jersey adding to the air quality issues. The fires in New Jersey have since been completely contained.

More than 3 million acres have burned in 1,981 fires in Canada so far this year. While one fire has been brought under control, a second fire continues to burn as of Sunday, according to the Associated Press.

More: Columbus air quality alert extended as particle pollution reaches worst levels in 13 years

The haze will extend into Tuesday when there is a slight chance of showers starting after 1 p.m. The haze is predicted to let up, with conditions partly sunny with a high near 83 degrees. Initially, there will be light northwest wind, which will shift to the north and increase to 5 to 9 mph by the morning. The chance of precipitation is around 20%.

Tuesday night, the sky will become mostly cloudy, and the temperature will decrease to about 56 degrees. Expect a north wind blowing at 7 to 10 mph.

Dispatch Data: Ohio Wildfire and Smoke Map

"The good news is that this smoke should dissipate/move out of the area tonight into Wednesday," the National Weather Service tweeted Tuesday morning.

What is the weather forecast for later this week?

On Wednesday, it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 77 degrees and a north wind blowing at 7 to 9 mph. By night, the sky will be mostly clear, and the temperature will drop to around 51 degrees.

Moving on to Thursday, it will be sunny, with temperatures reaching a high near 77 degrees. The sky will remain mostly clear at night, with a low of around 52 degrees.

On Friday, expect sunny weather with temperatures reaching a high near 78 degrees. Friday night will be mostly clear skies, with a low of around 55 degrees.

Summer comes early to Columbus

In a Twitter post, the National Weather Service in Wilmington noted Saturday's high of 94 degrees is the earliest Columbus has reached that temperature in over 70 years.

Columbus also ended a two-week dry spell on Saturday with showers and thunderstorms.

Reporting from USA Today was used in this story.

tmoorman@dispatch.com

@taijuannichole

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Why is the sky hazy? Smoke from Canadian wildfires over Columbus, Ohio