Expect a hazy Thursday with possible less healthy conditions around the city into the weekend as the 2024 Seattle smoke season has so far been mostly a mild affair.

Forecasters with the Washington Smoke Information effort say we can expect increasingly hazy conditions across Seattle into Thursday as smoke from four large wildfires to our east pours into the Puget Sound:

The westerly winds that have been blowing smoke away from Western Washington are expected to change course later this week.  Winds blowing from east to west will likely bring smoke into the region.  The four main fires that may contribute are:

• The Shetland Creek fire – located 100 miles north of the US-Canada border in British Columbia, currently 67,000 acres
• The Calcite Creek fire – located on the Canadian side of the Okanogan National Forest, currently 10,000 acres
• The Pioneer fire – Lake Chelan, currently 35,000 acres
• The Retreat fire – Yakima, currently 41,000 acres

Wildfire smoke could arrive in Western Washington Wednesday night into Thursday morning.

Seattle has thus far been spared long periods of high scores on the Air Quality Index but the eastern parts of the state including areas around Yakima and Spokane have been socked in with wildfire smoke in recent weeks.

The Puget Sound Clean Air Agency and officials with the state smoke monitoring effort say conditions around Western Washington could create an oscillating pattern “where smoke comes into the region overnight then clears out somewhat during the day” possibly overnight Wednesday and Thursday night into Friday morning as well.

The National Weather Service predicts this bout of smoke season weather shouldn’t last long with forecasted clearing by the weekend around Seattle.

Seattle smoke conditions are predicted to only reach “Moderate” levels meaning sensitive groups should limit outdoor activities.

Last summer’s smoke season was limited to a few stretches of haze and an “unhealthy” mid-August weekend.

 In 2022, the seriously unhealthy air arrived in September as the smoke seasons shift from year to year.

CHS looked here at the issues around fighting the fires in deep, hard to access wilderness areas, the benefits to letting nature take its course, and why we’ll likely see more large wildfires that impact air conditions around Seattle.

CHS also examined what Seattle leaders need to do to better prepare the city for the increasingly smoky summers ahead including clean air shelters and new rules to protect workers.

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