Oh Taylor, I'm so sorry! I hope that your community remains safe. The fires are so scary--how quickly the embers spread. Most of the fire fighters have been working mandatory 14-16 hour days with no break in sight. I don't know how they do it. One guy I talked today was on day 16. I can't even imagine!

Rachy, I know several people who have lost everything...it’s heartbreaking
Jenn: the smoke is often the reason for evacuations...stay safe.
Suz: I’m really hoping things don’t escalate in other areas , such as Canada.
JAileen: Thank you !

Seattle air quality is expected to reach very unhealthy levels. Our mayor has closed all parks, boat ramps, beaches, and golf courses through Sunday. Any improvement in the air quality won't happen until Monday at the earliest. I had to run an errand today, which required me to walk only about four blocks. My eyes were burning and it was difficult to breathe. Staying inside this weekend with DH.

So terrible. I am thinking of all Fabbers suffering through this. Wishing you all strength.

I am very sorry for all who have been affected and especially for those who have lost so much.

For those affected by the smoke, if you don’t already know, you can build a box fan to help filter the air in the house. Use furnace filters that are rated for smoke. Also change your furnace filters. We don’t have AC so we also put filters over our windows so that we could run the house fan and cool the house down at night. We also found running the furnace fan helped. The indoor air quality monitor helped us but it’s not necessary. See photos.

Hey! That’s cool Lar!

Taylor, I hope that your home makes it through ok. It’s hard to believe that this is happening on top of everything else.
Photos from a few days ago. Very discombobulating. My camera also couldn’t capture the true color. DS2 described the color as Thai Ice Tea. More light is coming through but we haven’t seen blue sky for days. We put on a mask to walk to the car in the driveway.

Taylor, all sooooo heartbreaking How are things? Your home? Thinking of you. Please keep us posted, if you can. Hang in there.

Well done, LAR101! I'm impressed! We have a Dyson fan that is also an air purifier, and it's helping.

Barabara Diane, Rachy, Jenn, Kelly and other CA'ers and OR'ers. It's all sooooo hard and horrible. On top of COVID. My heart goes out to you.

Here in Seattle, we have the worst air quality in the world at the moment, along with Portland and Vancouver. Smoky and hazardous outside. Very weird light. Dark, but light. Hunkering down at home but taking Sam out when he needs to go. Put on a pretty dress and onward! Hopefully things will improve by Monday, and we can open some windows. No a/c here either.

Stay safe, everyone. Much love. xo

So sick of 25 (or is it 26?) Spare the Air days in a row and wondering what it's doing to our lungs. The air quality measuring device is pretty far from where we live, and I'm darn sure my air is worse than they say it is. The orange sky was pretty freaky, but at least that day I didn't have a sore throat and/or headache.

We are going down south (which also has bad air) for a family reunion of sorts. You know, the kind you read about where family members die of Covid afterwards. It's a must attend type of affair it's to wish my MIL a happy 92nd birthday after she sold her house and prepares to move back to the old country with her sister. So it's a goodbye trip. In addition to MIL and her sister, it will be: Family of six, a couple, and DH and me with DD flying out, so 13 of us altogether meeting in a modest house with a tiny yard.

So do we insist on open windows and doors (no AC) and die a slow death? Or keep it tightly closed up with stagnant air (as they are inclined to do) and have DH die of COVID? I have a few co-morbidities, but the only ones DH doesn't have are organ transplant, cancer, and obesity. Otherwise, he has lupus, kidney disease, asthma, high blood pressure, diabetes, etc. so is sure to suffer a cytokine storm if he contracts COVID, pneumonia, or just gets sick. Annual (or more) trips to ER with him.

I am apt to opt for breathing lots of bad air since people attending have engaged in activities (like indoor church and getting together with friends) that I consider risky. The three of us will be staying at an AirBnB with AC and DH is bringing his nebulizer breathing machine. What would you do? What do you think?

Hope everyone's holding up all right. The air quality is downright awful here today, and it's worse further north.

Donna, what a nightmare scenario! Can you get some KN-95 masks to wear if you don't have access to N95s? That would help with both the smoke and the virus.

Thinking of all of you who are affected. We had bad fires last summer too. What a year. Hang in there everyone.

This fire season has been so terrible. I've has friends evacuated in Colorado, California and now Oregon. DD has been appointed "fire-mom" by her friend group in Eugene, OR... so far no need to evacuate. The air quality here in Silicon Valley is still terrible, but at least we are safe. Praying for those who are facing much more difficult situations this weekend, and the thousands of firefighters on the frontlines.

How is everyone doing? My heart goes out to those who are in extremely hard and unsafe conditions. It’s devastating, and extra unfathomable on top of the pandemic.

Here in Seattle, not much difference, but we are fine. The fires are still burning in Eastern WA about 4 hrs away. We went from hazardous to very unhealthy air quality here in the city where I live. It’s hanging around for most of the week. Our water and city view from the loft today. Onward we go.....

So many are impacted in serious and persistent ways; sorry to have been absent as these poignant descriptions were posted. Given how raw and stressed many are with Covid and its ripple effects, the fires seem even harder to navigate. Wishing that all are safe and that the air quality returns. The uncertainty and vulnerability, coupled with logistics sound wearing. I hope that you are receiving good local guidance, support and information.

Taylor- May everything go the best way possible. How frightening.
DonnaF- that is a lot of expectations at a time when “simply” navigating daily living sounds extremely challenging.
Angie, Rachy, Gretchen, Jenn, Barbara Diane and JAileen-glad you are okay despite the air quality. Changes so much all around.
LAR101-so resourceful and potentially helpful to others. Guessing air filtration and purifiers are very hard to find now.

Those photos are indeed worth a thousand words. I am with all of you.

Barbara Diane- Thank you. It is hard to believe !
Inge- Thank you. To awful for words is a good way to describe this!
Angie- I’m afraid you are getting our smoke ...stay safe.
Eliza- thank you for those kind words . Navigate daily life Has been a challenge for sure.
Thanks to all for your concern and good thoughts for those going through the fires and smoke.
Our firefighters did a heroic job of saving our town . We were able to come home yesterday, every thing is intact. We were extremely lucky. When we left there was a fire ball behind our house. Our neighbors and community have been such a blessing . We are still under level 2 (be ready to go) but the immediate danger is over. Smoke is horrendous, but , still life is good . We are beyond happy to be home, and ready to help clean up our little town !

Thanks, Eliza. Our smoke and very bad air quality is hanging around till the weekend apparently. We are still quite trapped. No doors and windows open. It's hot and stuffy inside. Rain in a few days. YES!!! Onward we go....

Taylor, THAT IS BRILLIANT NEWS! So very happy for you and your home. WELCOME BACK

So good to hear! Fingers crossed for the rest of fire season.

Taylor - so good to hear you are home safe. I'm almost glad I have not been on the forum in a while and didn't see this until now. Our air is "only" unhealthy" for the foreseeable future, with occasional excursions into hazardous.

Donna - what a difficult situation. It is so hard to maintain safer behaviors when loved ones have a different perception of/approach to risk. I have felt very stressed trying to maintain my close family's standard of safe when interacting with friends who look at the world differently. Remember that you are not wrong to prioritize your health!

JAileen and catherine - i've been thinking of you - DH went to Costco today and said the air was ghastly.

Taylor, so glad to know your home is safe (relatively speaking) and you are home. What a relief.

Donna...I do not know how on earth I'd navigate that situation but I am pretty sure I would wear a mask. And, what Karen said.

Wishing everyone enough clean air to breathe and healthy lungs.

The jet stream has brought the smoke all the over to southern Ontario!

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada.....ir-quality

Angie, Rachy, and Suz: Thank you so much for you thoughtful comments and support during my six day evacuation. It was comforting during such a scary time!
karen13: Thank you, coming back home was such a relief . Others weren’t so lucky.
Im hoping we can all get some relief from the smoke. It’s absolutely toxic to breathe. It’s supposed to rain possibly in the next couple of days. That would be incredibly helpful.

DONNA: I think that gathering sounds terrifying. I would not go. I would make my excuses and promise a visit to the old country when it is safe.

Looks like Bay Area in CA got some breathing air now - might be temporarily improvement. Hope the worst has passed.

Taylor- must be a relief to be home. I picture leaving under that fear and pressure; so much stress.

I wish all clean air and diminishing fires. Some rain would make a difference. Can’t help but note that some folks are facing Hurricane Sally flooding now. It has not been a year of balance...

Appreciate all the updates and send my best to everyone.

Taylor, I hope with all my heart that the situation on your side stays under control. Hang in there and stay safe!

Slimcat, the air in SF seems to be improving. EXCELLENT!

Here in Seattle, the air is slightly better today but still bad. Not hazardous anymore, but very unhealthy. Improvements over the weekend hopefully, and rain in two days. I REALLY hope it pours. We are okay. Always onward! And a glimpse of water in our view today

Angie- “not hazardous but very unhealthy” as an improvement is profound. Appreciate your support to the YLF community facing this with you and share your hope for lots of rain as well as better air quality for everyone.

I am in the northeast and we have haze from the fire, though apparently it is not low enough to impact air quality.

Thinking of everyone who is navigating all the aspects of the wildfires. The people who are on the ground managing containment efforts are remarkable; what a huge and potentially dangerous task. Thank you.

I'm just now seeing this thread and was rushing through with bated breath waiting to find out whether Taylor was okay. So happy you are back home and safe!

It's still pretty smoky here in So Cal. And here's a great photo of a friend of ours giving "helpful advice" to the firefighters in his back yard as they were trying to evacuate him the other day! (He's back now and safe.)

Eliza; Angie and MsMary: Hugs to you all, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for your sincere and thoughtful concern!
On to the horrendous clean up, but we have so much to be thankful for here.

That’s a great photo MsMary

Taylor, I’m glad your house was okay. What a relief. That’s so stressful. Our air was two points from very unhealthy. This feels worse than the pandemic. With the pandemic we could at least go outside.