SALMON, ID - While some weather changes throughout the week helped firefighters battling the Moose Fire in Eastern Idaho, the proximity of the fire is still making it difficult to breathe for residents living in the Salmon Valley.
The Moose Fire, which is burning north and downriver from Salmon continues to impact air quality over a wide area. That's especially true in the morning hours when temperature inversions are trapping smoke closer to the surface.
Periods of heavy smoke have continued along the river adjacent to the fire, impacting residents and visibility along US Highway 93. But even in Salmon — which is more than 20 miles away — the smoke has been persistent for most of the past two weeks.
At times this past week, air quality was hitting "unhealthy for sensitive groups" especially as the fire was more active in the afternoons.
However, Friday the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality was still forecasting those poor conditions to continue through the weekend, although readings had at least temporarily dropped to "good" air quality.
