What’s That Strange Smell and Smoke In The Air Around Northern Illinois?
If you walk outside today, you'll noticed a very odd smell in the air. Some describe the smell as chemical in nature, while others describe the smell of burning leaves
In addition to the smell, you'll notice a very odd haze. It's not fog, but it's due to Northeast winds blowing in clouds of smoke from Canadian forest fires. The smoke is traveling though the jet stream landing here in Northern Illinois reducing visibility to less than three miles.
Individuals with respiratory issues may experience headaches, breathing difficulty and other discomforts
According to a release from Candice King From the Eyewitness news Weather Center
Haze from today has been caused by the wildfires in northern Canada. It’s been very hot and dry over the northwest and into Canada. The cold front that came down last night brought a cooler and more dense air mass with it. The wind flow in the upper part of the atmosphere is coming in from the northwest, which is pulling the smoke from the wildfires southward. The more dense air is pulling the smoke closer to the surface of the earth. Might not be quite as bad tomorrow, if we even see it tomorrow.
The good news is the smoke will be gone by tonight, plus as result we could have interesting sunset.