Shifting winds expected to bring rain by Monday
Update, 10:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 23: An air pollution advisory issued at about 7:30 p.m. Saturday for Jackson and Josephine counties will remain in effect until midnight Sunday, according to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality due to smoke from wildfires burning in the area. An advisory was previously issued Friday for Curry County.
DEQ also expects intermittent smoke for other areas of Southern Oregon, including central Douglas County, southern Coos, and Klamath counties.
As of Saturday evening, the chance of rain forecast by the NWS had not changed from Friday, but the amount of rain that might fall Monday was lowered to a quarter to half inch of rain, down from as much as three-quarters of an inch.
Original story posted Friday:
By Bert Etling, Ashland.news
After a week of mostly clear skies, Ashland smoke levels spiked over the 100 level on the air quality index Friday evening, a condition expected to continue into Saturday morning before clearing most of the day.
Smoke from fires in Northern California may be driven back into the Rogue Valley on Saturday evening, according to a National Weather Service smoke forecast video.
“For the Rogue Valley, the smoke from area wildfires decided to have one last hurrah before the winds come and blow it away and the rains come this weekend,” according to a forecast analysis posted on the NWS website Friday evening.
Current Ashland AQI readings are available on the city of Ashland SmokeWise page (click here) and on the Ashland.news home page in the right-hand column above the weather box (click here).
The weather forecast as of Friday put the chance of rain in Ashland at 20% during the day Sunday, then 40% Sunday night.
Rain Monday is a near certainty — 90% — with total rainfall forecast to be in the range of a half to three-quarters of an inch.
Chance of rain diminishes significantly Tuesday, but remains a possibility through Friday.
High temperatures are expected to hit the 70s Saturday and Sunday, with lows in 50s, falling to highs in the mid-60s and lows in the upper 40s starting Monday and continuing through the week.
Email Ashland.news Executive Editor Bert Etling at betling@ashland.news or call or text him at 541-631-1313.
Sept. 23: Links added to current smoke conditions.
