We have an explanation for the smoky conditions in our region on Sunday.
Environment Canada meteorologist Geoff Coulson says it was from forest fires in Northwestern Quebec, east of James Bay. The smoke was carried from that direction by the wind.
“That smoke then continued to go south of the area later in the day on Sunday,” he explains, “but certainly for a few hours there, it was quite widespread in the Northeast.”
Coulson says the worst for Monday is along the Ontario-Québec border.
“So we may be looking at areas like Lake Abitibi, areas east of Kirkland Lake, right along the border itself that may see some this afternoon and this evening from those forest fires, but it looks like the remainder of the northeast – Timmins, Cochrane, Kapuskasing – should be out of that area.”
The meteorologist goes on to say that we can expect more smoky days this summer, when prevailing winds bring it in from the record year for forest fires, especially in the western provinces and Northwest Territories.