Smoke from forest fires blanket WI, IL

A forest fire in the Pagami Creek Region in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness near Ely, MN has been causing hazy conditions and health hazards today. The hardest hit areas were in Wisconsin and Illinois. Smoke from the nearly 100,000 acre forest fire has traveled nearly 600 miles to Eastern Wisconsin near Milwaukee and portions of Chicago. Health officials are worried that inhaling the smoke could cause upper respiratory and allergy concerns for children and older residents of those areas.

The fire started August 18, 2011 when lighting struck 20 miles away from Ely due to the dry conditions the flames began spreading quickly this week after the dry, cold front passed through on Monday bringing with it high winds thus fanning the flames. Hundreds of firefighters were expected to arrive in northern Minnesota today to help combat the fire today, and the cooler temperatures should also help calm the fire's intensity.

  
Aerial image showing the smoke plume traveling across Lake Superior into WI.
Source for image: www.crh.noaa.gov/news/display_cmsstory.php?wfo=mkx&storyid=72984&source=0

Article source: http://heraldnews.suntimes.com/news/7639146-418/haze-from-minnesota-wildfire-prompts-health-warning.html