Mary Chao
Washington's raging Tunnel 5 fire scorches over 540 acres
The fire is threatening more than 100 structures and has destroyed at least 10 so far.
LEARN MOREThere's no relief from the steamy hot weather or air quality issues this summer. Record temperatures are still being felt around the country, while areas such as the Northwest, Michigan, New York City and Los Angeles continue to be besieged by air quality issues.
According to the National Weather Service, 2023 breaks the record for the most amount of Excessive Heat Warnings at nine total. This year also breaks the record for most consecutive days under an Excessive Heat Warning at five, between June 27 and July 1.
As the wildfires in Canada continue to burn, smoke is blowing into surrounding areas in the United States.
The wildfire smoke drifts into the Northeast when low and mid-level wind patterns turn north or northwest from eastern Canada, explained Josh Nichols, meteorologist at WKBW-TV in Buffalo, New York.
AirNow.com shows poor Air Quality Index this week in areas such as Southern California, Washington state and New York City.
The New York City area was engulfed in a fog of orange in early June with some of the worst air quality in decades due to wildfire smoke from Canada.
The fires are still burning in Quebec and Ontario provinces in Canada, with smoke reaching parts of the U.S. including Michigan.
Haze and smoke are two different meteorological issues, Nichols said.
"New York City in summer will always see its normal haze driven by low level ozone interacting with sunlight," Nichols said.
As far as the smoke, "As long as Canada continues to have a dry summer and fire continues to burn, wherever that wind shift takes place, the Northeast will contend with wildfire smoke," Nichols said.
