wildfires

Almost the entire state of Montana is under some sort of heat and fire advisory on Thursday. Excessive heat continues for dozens of counties, and Red Flag Warning persist for huge chunks of Montana. Windy conditions are expected with some thunderstorm activity, increasing the chance of existing fires to grow.

Despite initial fears of a severe fire season, recent weather improvements in the Northern Rockies may reduce wildfire risks this summer.

Montana's snow drought triggers ski area closures, wildfire fears, and wildlife concerns.

Very dry conditions, gusty winds up to 40 MPH, and the chance of lightning storms have created dangerous fire conditions across all of western Montana on Friday. Any wildfires that start today will be difficult to contain, so Red Flag Warnings have been issued across the western counties.

Wildfire smoke from Canada, and the smoke from fires within Montana dropped the Air Quality Index (AQI) in parts of Montana by dozens of points on Wednesday. Thursday isn't looking too promising either with Air Quality Alerts and Heat Advisories in effect for large portions of the state.

Red Flag Warnings have been issued for a large area covering Fort Peck Lake and the Missouri River on Thursday. Very dry conditions and gusty winds up to 40 MPH today make for extremely precarious conditions.

Montana has been surrounded by raging wildfires all summer and now we have plenty of our own to deal with. One of the most challenging aspects of these wildfires is the particulate filled smoke that they produce. It can stay localized in valleys or continuously blow into the state with the jet stream. How can you stay healthy if you're susceptible to breathing issues?

It's not the worst we've ever seen, but a few more unlucky lightning strikes and Montana's wildfire season could explode. We're currently battling 77 active wildfires and they are for the most part in remote, hard to fight areas, with plenty of timber and fuel to burn.

The fires are being set now to help with forest management and wildfire prevention

Unhealthy and Very Unhealthy levels of particulates remain in Montana's wildfire smoke soaked air. Every single county in western Montana and southwest Montana continue to be under an Air Quality Alert.

Here's an updated list of the largest wildfires currently burning in Montana.

After a weekend of decent blue skies, towns in western Montana are back to 'Very Unhealthy" air quality index numbers of 200+. The skies are hazy and you can taste the smoke in the air.