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LOGAN — There is an unmistakable haze that has been hanging around the Wasatch Front these past few days. Air quality experts compare it to a smoggy, winter inversion, only it's happening in the middle of the summer.
It's the result of the smoke from a drawn-out fire season and it's leaving residents with some poor quality air.
Cache County seems to be getting the brunt of the haze. For the first half of Monday they had basically red flag conditions, though it improved a lot throughout the afternoon and evening.
Still, that smoky layer can mean bad news if you're outside exerting yourself. Even during a simple day at the park, people in Cache County can't help but notice that murky smoke cloud, hanging overhead.
"(You) can hardly see the mountains, and my little girl's been coughing a little bit," said parent Jenn Kasper.
Experts say an intense fire season has brought us conditions we'd normally see during the winter months. Smoke from fires in Utah and Idaho seems to collect, and linger in the valley. The weekend was especially bad, but folks are hoping wind will carry some of the smoke away this week.
"This year's been just extra bad," said parent Amy Choate. "I've been having a lot of headaches, and I think it's contributing to that as well."
"We're not used to seeing this kind of air during our summer months," said environmental scientist Joshua Greer from the Bear River Health Department. "But if you do the same things you do during the winter, you reduce your activity outside."
He emphasized that just because it's summer doesn't mean these conditions can be ignored.
"Whether it's winter or summer, it's still an issue," Greer said. "And when we breathe it in it becomes a problem for us."
It's a bigger problem in the Cache Valley, but one that is being felt along the Wasatch Front. Through most of the Salt Lake Valley the fires are creating yellow air quality conditions, which can cause issues in children, the elderly and people with respiratory conditions.
Still, some people say it's not enough to keep them inside. "We just try to make sure that they're getting plenty of water," Choate said.
