Air Alert for Even the Oregon Coast; Portland Slowly Cools Down

Published 08/06/2017 at 8:13 PM PDT - Updated 08/06/2017 at 8:16 PM PDT
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff

(Oregon Coast) – Much of northwestern Oregon looks like Mars now. A weird, dusty orange sky with even deeper reds and oranges on a weakened sunset: it's like waking up inside the Red Faction video game. All thanks to miles and miles of wildfires from around the continent.

Stranger still, the weather forecasts for inland and the Oregon coast are being expressed in terms of “patchy smoke” along with the usual predictions of clouds and temperatures. All of northwest Oregon – including the coast – is under an air quality alert until 7 p.m. on Tuesday, with the National Weather Service (NWS) office in Portland saying the air will get worse before it gets better as 90-degree temps continue inland. Meanwhile, the Oregon coast will be sticking around a cool 60-something to low 70s, but with hazy and sometimes cloudy skies.

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, the Southwest Clean Air Agency, and Lane Regional Air Protection Agency issued the Air Quality Alert for all of northwest Oregon, from the Cascades to the coast, and from southern Washington down through most of southern Oregon. Along the Oregon coast, it's in effect through more than half the coastline, ending about Reedsport and leaving through Brookings clear of the alert.

The NWS said wildfires burning in the region combined with forecasted conditions will cause air quality to reach unhealthy levels due to smoke and ozone at times through Tuesday evening.

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“Pollutants in smoke can cause burning eyes, runny nose, aggravate heart and lung diseases, and aggravate other serious health problems,” the NWS said. “Limit outdoor activities and keep children indoors if it is smoky. Please follow medical advice if you have a heart or lung condition.”

So far, air quality has been substantially worse inland than on the coastline.

For Portland, the forecast for Monday through Wednesday calls for patchy smoke and daytime highs around 90 or just higher. Things clear up more on Wednesday through Friday, but day temps stay the same. Things begin to finally cool in the I-5 corridor on Saturday, getting down to normal mid 80s. Nighttime lows remain in the low 60s for the week, offering good cooling at night.

For the Oregon coast, the forecast is mostly sunny but with patchy smoke on Monday and Tuesday. Temps are higher on the north coast than central coast towns like Newport or Lincoln City, with highs around 70 up north but in the mid 60s in Lincoln and Lane counties.

From Wednesday onward, the smoke appears to clear out of the beach towns. See Oregon Coast Weather.

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