The Department of Natural Resources issued an air quality alert for cities and towns across Wisconsin, due to wildfire smoke making its way south from Canada.
The June 3 advisory comes as northern Wisconsin residents experience hazier air quality from northerly winds carrying surface smoke, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Taylor Patterson.
“It was to the point where people could smell it,” Patterson said.
The National Weather Service warns that heavy surface smoke may move south through the state on June 3. Because of a south-moving cold front bringing rain across Wisconsin on June 3, the impacts of the smoke are predicted to be felt statewide, according to the weather service.
The air quality advisory was expanded to east and southeast Wisconsin, after being restricted to northern, central and northeast Wisconsin on the morning of June 3.
The NWS is advising sensitive groups, including individuals with asthma or heart disease, to reschedule outdoor activities or move them inside.
The smoke is coming from wildfires in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Rising heat, winds, and dry air sparked blazes in those Canadian provinces. Thousands have been evacuated.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: All of Wisconsin in air quality alert due to Canadian wildfire smoke
Reporting by Ariela Lopez, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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