Ashland AQI climbs to 435, well into ‘hazardous’ level; forecast calls for conditions to improve midday Friday

Ashland.news staff report

Smoke is collecting in the Rogue Valley due to fires in our region and may continue on and off for some time, the city of Ashland cautioned on its website and via phone calls to emergency alert subscribers Thursday evening.

A similar warning was posted by the Medford office of the National Weather Service, which said on social media that smoke from area wildfires is bringing diminished air quality to eastern Curry, Josephine and Jackson counties.

A video showing forecast smoke patterns blowing in from fires northwest, southwest and east of the Rogue Valley will continue to cause hazardous conditions through late Friday morning, according to the forecast.

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) on Thursday evening issued an Air Pollution Advisory for Jackson and Josephine counties that will be in effect until 5 p.m. Friday.

It says wildfires burning in the region, combined with forecast conditions, will cause air quality levels to fluctuate, potentially into unhealthy levels, especially Thursday evening through Friday morning.

The DEQ suggests staying inside if possible with windows and doors closed. If possible, high efficiency filters should be used to filter the air.

The city of Ashland advises residents to take precautions, especially if they are under 18, older than 65, or diagnosed with a preexisting health condition. 

As of 6 p.m., the Air Quality Index level for Ashland was at 280, well into the very unhealthy range. That spiked to 435 at 8 p.m., well into the hazardous range, and 470 at 9 p.m.

Email Ashland.news Executive Editor Bert Etling at betling@ashland.news or call or text him at 541-631-1313.