Smoke from River Fire makes way toward Fresno and could be here for a while, meteorologist says
The River Fire sent smoke into the Fresno area Sunday evening and it could stick around, according to the National Weather Service in Hanford.
Jim Dudley of the National Weather Service said the lower level smoke drifted into Fresno and in Selma based on satellite imagery.
The smoke will drift to the South Valley throughout the overnight hours “based on our winds that normally blow from the northwest.”
“There is not a lot of wind,” Dudley said. “That is a good thing, but it’s still drifting in the Fresno area. Unfortunately, what drifts in, is not going to drift out very fast either.”
Dudley added the higher smoke is drifting towards the east into the foothills, such as Bass Lake.
Said Dudley: “It’s kind of a tale of two different wind directions: the lower stuff drifting south towards Fresno and the upper stuff drifting kind of east into the mountains.”
This story was originally published July 11, 2021 at 9:52 PM.
