Colorado Wildfire Smoke Hits Denver

Smoke from the Colorado wildfires hit Denver this morning.

Downtown Denver was shrouded in an orange glow early Tuesday before a blanket of cold air trapping the fire pollution began to rise. The foothills stretching north to Fort Collins were virtually obscured by smoke, while closer to the 68-square-mile blaze, visibility on some highways was just a mile.

State health officials urged the elderly, children and those prone to asthma to stay indoors.

"The rule is if you can see or smell smoke, stay inside," Boulder County health specialist Chana Goussetis told the Daily Camera.

Yet many Denverites went about business as usual, bicycling to work and jogging along the many paths through the city.

.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell announced late Monday the agency was contracting eight heavy air tankers to increase the aging national fleet to 17.

Still, Colo. U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet urged President Barack Obama to sign a bill that would allow the Forest Service to buy as many as seven large air tankers outright. The U.S. House and Senate passed the bill last week.

Minnesota Wildfire Grows to 100,000 Acres

The Pagami Creek fire in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness of Northern Minnesota has grown to more than 100,000 acres, becoming a plume-driven event.

Superior National Forest officials said the fire made an unprecedented 16 mile run to the east, reaching the edge of Polly Lake.  The fire is now under Unified Command with Lake County Sheriff's Office as full partners of management of the fire.

Governor Mark Dayton issued an Executive Order directing the Minnesota National Guard to lend some big air power to help fight the fire.

Red Cross volunteers are moving cots, blankets, shelter materials, and refreshments to the Community Center in Finland. The community center has been established as an evacuation and reception area.

A new concern now is that the fire may be moving toward the blowdown area from the storm of 1999. If it gets into that region the timber on the ground is dry and stacked like cord-wood. Fire officials say it will go up like a box of matches.

It’s by far the largest forest fire in Minnesota since 1918, surpassing 2007’s Ham Lake fire, which burned about 38,000 acres in Minnesota and another 38,000 in Ontario while also burning 163 buildings.

So far, the Pagami Creek fire has not destroyed any homes, and only one small structure has burned, a relief cabin for Minnesota Department of Natural Resources conservation officers on Insula Lake.

Minnesota Wildfire Smoke Spreads Over Wisconsin

Smoke from a wildfire in northern Minnesota is dispersing throughout eastern Wisconsin creating extremely hazy conditions and leaving a thick, smoky smell in the air.

Lightning strikes started the blaze in the arrowhead of Minnesota back around August 18th. The National Weather Service says by Sunday, September 11th, the fire had grown to around 4,500 acres. As of Tuesday afternoon, it encompassed 60,000 acres.

A massive smoke plume developed as a result of the wildfire on September 11th. That plume of smoke has now dispersed into the eastern half of Wisconsin. It's turned the sky milky white and created a rather strong, smoky odor.

The National Weather Service received numerous reports from trained spotters throughout southeast Wisconsin. One in Hartford indicated visibility was only 3/4 of a mile and dark cars had a white coating on them. One spotter in Whitewater said he could "taste" the smoke in the air and his eyes were burning. In Waukesha and Racine, spotters indicated they were having difficulty with their asthma because of the poor air quality; one went to a hospital for treatment.  The smoke is now reaching as far south as Kenosha and will be crossing over into Illinois.

The DNR and State Department of Health Services (DHS) has been receiving calls regarding the heavy smoke odor, ash and concerns about smoke inhalation. The DHS says in healthy people, symptoms of smoke exposure usually include irritation of eyes, nose and throat. It may also include some breathing discomfort.

People who have asthma, COPD or some other respiratory ailment are urged to remain indoors with doors and windows closed. Officials suggest using a high-efficiency air (HEPA) filter on air conditioners to reduce the amount of pollution in the air.