Wildfire smoke to cause hazy conditions in Ottawa today

There are hazy conditions in Ottawa on Tuesday due to wildfire smoke. (Westin Camera)

There will be hazy skies over Ottawa today as smoke from wildfires burning in northern Ontario and on the Prairies drifts through the national capital region.

“Hazy skies in place as smoke from wildfires drift over the area,” Environment Canada said. “This may obscure visibility slightly and reduce the clarity of the sky.”

Ottawa’s air quality is expected to drop to a “4-Moderate Risk” today and tonight due to wildfire smoke.

Environment Canada senior climatologist David Phillips said the smoke will cause the haze over Ottawa, but it shouldn’t cause any breathing difficulties.

According to firesmoke.ca, wildfire smoke will linger through the day.

The hazy weather arrives as Ottawa gets its first taste of summer-like weather.

Phillips says after average temperatures through the month of May, summer weather will arrive this week.

“Tomorrow (Wednesday) could be the warmest day of the entire year so far, 28 degrees – so kind of comfortable,“ Phillips told CTV Morning Live. ”What’s interesting through about this week is consistency. It looks like every day in the mid to high 20s, so consistently warm.”

Environment Canada is calling for a mainly sunny day today. High 25 C, with the humidex making it feel like 27.

Clear tonight. Low 16 C.

Wednesday will be sunny. High 28 C, with the humidex making it feel like 32.

It will be cloudy with a 40 per cent chance of showers on Thursday. High 26 C.

The outlook for Friday calls for a mix of sun and cloud with a 30 per cent chance of showers. High 26 C.

Saturday will see a mix of sun and cloud with a 30 per cent chance of showers. High 25 C.

Phillips says this is a “great way” to ease into summer.

“I think this first week of June looks pretty good,” Phillips said. “Beyond that, our models are saying pretty consistent. We think June, July and August are going to be warmer than normal, now we don’t know how much warmer.”

The normal temperatures for this time of year are a high of 23 C and a low of 12 C.