WEST SEATTLE WEATHER: Moon reddens, as smoke brings Air Quality Alert

| Environment | West Seattle news | West Seattle weather

9:49 PM: Thanks to Ben Hutchinson for the photo! We were discussing the smoke-reddened almost-full-moon view on Twitter thanks to a heads-up from @WestSeaWx, but no image until Ben’s photo arrived. The color’s a lot like what we saw at sunset, vivid orange-red, now that wildfire smoke has moved back in – this time the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency says it’s coming west from the Cascades. And the National Weather Service has an Air Quality Alert for our area through midnight tomorrow night, citing Montana smoke moving this way too. This map shows the fires around the region:

Meantime, we’re also still under a Heat Advisory alert from the NWS>, through 10 pm Tuesday night.

11:11 PM: If you go out to look at the moon, you might notice ash in the air, too, and a light dusting on parked vehicles.

ws commuter September 5, 2017 (8:08 am)

Yes, I noticed a little bit of ash on my car this morning. I was wondering where it came from.

Kersti E muul September 5, 2017 (8:08 am)

My car this morning…

I’ve had a Headache for a month straight.

This is getting out of hand 😔🙁

JoanE September 5, 2017 (11:30 am)

Soot is raining through our skylight. Time to do a rain dance

Azimuth September 5, 2017 (11:45 am)

Curses! I just washed my outdoor cushions…

anonyme September 5, 2017 (12:14 pm)

This is the best they can do? An “air quality alert”? WTF? No burn bans? Or do they figure since most of the west coast is on fire anyway, it won’t make a difference?

The website for Puget Sound Clean Air Agency is down; coincidence? Not surprised, as a little research reveals that they are a no-action group governed by local politicians – and we know how big they are on enforcement. The air is so thick with smoke and particulate matter (ash) that it looks like the eruption of Mt. St. Helens, for those of you who remember it. This poses serious health risks for everyone, not just “sensitive” individuals. At the very least, exposure should be limited and masks worn outside.

WSB September 5, 2017 (12:20 pm)

PS Clean Air was up as recently as very early this morning… I looked at it around 1:30 am. Speaking as a website owner, I can tell you that outages happen outside the operators’ control, sometimes just at the very moment when your info is MOST needed (thank God we’ve finally finally found a way out of breaking-news-overload crashes). There were no burn bans at the time and the National Weather Service’s Air Quality Alert was the most informative thing I found late last night. The weather is supposed to turn for the better this evening but I’m checking for updates before our next “it’s smoky and ashy” story … TR

P.S. And it looks like they’re back – http://www.pscleanair.org/Pages/default.aspx

anonyme September 5, 2017 (12:19 pm)

The PSCAG website is back up, but their contact info has been disabled.

Lina September 5, 2017 (12:32 pm)

I think that I remember a list being put out during the last heat wave of local places that have AC. I am wondering if anyone could link to that or re-post it. I can definitely feel the effects of the smoke – tight chest, eyes sore, sinuses and ears ache and a whooper of a headache. I would love to find some local spots to go for relief or bring my kiddo to. Thanks!

WSB September 5, 2017 (12:38 pm)

We haven’t had an updated list in a few years. We have asked repeatedly for suggestions, but few have come in, and I don’t have anyone to delegate 100+ phone calls to. But I can say that the High Point and Delridge Libraries are considered to have excellent AC. (West Seattle Library and part of Southwest Library are not recommended.) The Senior Center of West Seattle is a “cooling center” too, though I don’t know whether they have open public spaces on a day like today. While it won’t help with the smoke, I’m researching right now for the next update and temperatures are not going to be so bad this afternoon – BUT the Air Quality Alert is being extended. – TR

(ADDED P.S. – Here’s the comment thread from the end of July, with a few other suggestions:

https://westseattleblog.com/2017/07/west-seattle-weather-heat-wave-warning-update-and-where-to-stay-cool/#comments )
- Lina September 5, 2017 (1:36 pm)
  
  Thanks so much, you folks are awesome!