Skies will look hazy Thursday and Friday in the South Sound, the National Weather Service says.
The large plume of smoke rising from the Bear Gulch Fire near Lake Cushman by the Olympic National Forest, which has burned over 15,700 acres and grew by about 5,000 acres in the last four days, is starting to change direction, said meteorologist Jeff Michalski.
Smoke had been drifting northward over the eastern Olympic Peninsula, but now winds aloft are bringing the plume to southern Mason, Thurston and western Lewis Counties, Michalski said.
The air quality index is still looking “good” for those areas, though, meaning smoke has not made the air unhealthy.
Residents in those counties can expect to see hazy skies and colorful sunsets, but the smoke will stay high in the sky, Michalski said.
Smoke could sink to the surface Thursday night, but that could be short-lived, he said. It’s too early to say if it will make the air quality unhealthy.
Cool, wetter conditions will help mitigate the Bear Gulch Fire soon, though, Michalski said. The Olympic region is expecting one to two inches of rain Saturday through Monday, which will slow the fire down, but not put it out.