Smoky Air Unhealthy to Breathe – Again
After a night and a morning of clear skies, smoke from fires burning in the Bitterroot area and the Mustang Complex near the Idaho-Montana border, air in the Bitterroot and Missoula valleys is once again unhealthy to breathe.
Air Quality Specialist with the Missoula City-County Health Department Sara Cofield says the returning smoke has made being outside unhealthy for specialized groups, such as those with respirator problems, the very young and the elderly.
Cofield says the air is not bad enough to call off school sporting events, but she says that coaches and parents should use their judgment about outside athletic activity. She says the air would have to get much worse to call off any event as large as a Grizzly football game, but officials will keep an eye on the situation. Cofield says the smoke is expected to deepen over the next 24 hours.
Air Quality Specialist Sara Cofield