Oregon Public Broadcasting

Smoke from the California wildfires has drifted all the way north to the southern Puget Sound area.  The hazy conditions are making it hard to catch a glimpse of the Northwest’s iconic mountain peaks.

In southern Oregon, the conditions are actually bad enough to make it harder to breathe for the elderly, children, and people with respiratory problems.

Roger Nelson is with the National Weather Service in Portland.  He says the poor air quality could last a couple more days.

Roger Nelson:  “I think we can probably expect it at least through Thursday, depending on how they do putting the fires out, and there’s not any more.”

Forecasters say there’s a chance of rain in northern California later this week. That’s where 45,000 acres are burning in the Trinity-Shasta National Forest.  But officials say the storms could also bring more lightning strikes and high winds to the area.