The smoke may be clearing but an air quality advisory remains in effect until there is a change in the weather — likely not until Sunday.
Metro Vancouver air quality planner Geoff Doerksen said fine particulate concentrations from the smoke have hit levels never seen before across the entire Lower Mainland.
"Seeing these heavy smoke levels mix down to the ground is unprecedented for our region," he said.
There have been similar occurrences in the past: Metro saw elevated particulate in 201as a result of smoke from wildfires in Siberia. There was also more localized smoke in 2005 from a fire in Burns Bog.
But this most recent haze is from forest fires west of Pemberton, on the Sunshine Coast near Sechelt and on Vancouver Island sent Tri-City residents to social media commenting on the red sun, falling ash and the grey pall that hung over the mountains for several days.
Doerksen said some of the smoke may eve becoming from as far as Alberta and the Northwest Territories. with the smoke in two layers, one ground level and one higher aloft, affecting the Metro area, with upper level smoke coming from more distant sources.
Open burning is banned in the Tri-Cities because of hot, dry conditions. - Port Moody Fire
Provincial officials are considering a ban on the use of ATVs and motorcycles in the backcountry to prevent more fires from being sparked.
"A lot of forest companies have shut down their private lands and put up gates," Dupont added.
"We're hoping with all the smoke more people will think about the fires that are burning and be more careful," she said.
The air quality advisory means people with chronic underlying medical conditions should postpone strenuous exercise until the air quality advisory is lifted, according to the regional district.
Avoiding the use of gas-powered mowers and other equipment, is recommended, as is taking transit or carpooling instead of driving can avoid further adding to the region's air pollution problem.
Environment Canada predicts a 60% chance of rain for Sunday night.
CAMPFIRES BANNED
Firefighters and aircraft from Ontario arrived in B.C. Tuesday to help deal with the growing wildfire threat, and more reinforcements are on their way from Australia.
Ontario sent 70 firefighters and specialists to Abbotsford and Cranbrook for deployment in the Coastal and Southeast fire centres, with two skimming aircraft, a "birddog" plane and an air attack officer arriving at the Kamloops fire centre.
Forests Minister Steve Thomson said he expects further help to arrive from Australia, with more personnel coming from New Zealand to assist fire crews in Alberta.
More assistance has been requested through the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre, which sent B.C. crews to Alaska, Alberta and Yukon earlier in the season.
The B.C. Wildfire Service recorded 23 new fires Monday, with 184 active fires in the province. As of Tuesday there were 40 homes under evacuation order and another 920 on alert.
Meanwhile, campers take note: The Coastal Fire Centre is prohibiting all campfires due to continued hot and dry conditions and the dryness of forest fuels. The public's assistance is requested to help reduce the number of human-caused fires and enable crews to respond to naturally occurring wildfires.
— with files from Tom Fletcher and Diane Strandberg
