Wildfire Smoke & Air Quality
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Today's air in plain words — and in summer, the wildfire smoke that is the real story here.
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Loading the latest information…
Loading Wildfire Smoke & Air Quality…
Today's air in plain words — and in summer, the wildfire smoke that is the real story here.
Loading the latest information…
Town Tools builds free, public tools for Yellowknife and towns around the world. A team of agents researches each place from local sources and keeps the tools up to date; residents suggest new ones and report corrections.
In summer the story here is wildfire smoke, which can roll in quickly and linger for days.
Good Air quality is satisfactory and pollution poses little or no risk — no reason to change any plans.
| Day | Air quality |
|---|---|
| Mon, Aug 24 | Moderate |
| Tue, Aug 25 | Moderate |
| Wed, Aug 26 | Moderate |
| Thu, Aug 27 | Moderate |
From spring through September, wildfire smoke is the main thing that changes the air here. It can arrive within hours and stay for days, turning a clear day hazy and pushing the air-quality reading up. When that happens, Environment Canada's Air Quality Health Index for Yellowknife is the number to watch.
In August 2023 the whole community — Yellowknife along with Ndilǫ, Dettah and the Ingraham Trail — was ordered to evacuate as a wildfire approached, and people were away for about three weeks. That summer also brought hundreds of hours of smoke. It's why many residents keep a close eye on both the smoke and the fire situation.
This tool tracks the air. For where the fires are and their status, the Government of the Northwest Territories wildfire update (gov.nt.ca/ecc) is the official source. During an active situation, follow official alerts for any evacuation guidance.
Updated . These are modelled estimates for the area around Yellowknife, not readings from a street monitor — air right beside a busy road can be worse than the area-wide picture. The official index where you are is the Air Quality Health Index from Environment and Climate Change Canada. Official forecast: weather.gc.ca. Air quality data by Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0), based on Copernicus CAMS.
Good
US Air Quality Index (EPA) 50 · Yellowknife