Smoke Forecast for Thursday, June 19, 2025, 10:30 AM
Current Conditions
Today, warm temperatures and low relative humidity will continue to fuel the active Jericho Mountain Fire, which now has a calculated fire perimeter area of 350 acres. Residual smoke, primarily from fire activity yesterday, is visible to the south and east of Helena, and as the day goes on expect smoke concentrations to increase in the Helena area.
Late in the day on Wednesday, the Wolf Syrup Fire was reported approximately 35 miles west of Kalispell. Per Montana DNRC, the fire was estimated to be 50 acres, so depending on growth today, light smoke impacts may be seen near Whitefish this afternoon.
At 10:00 AM Thursday, air quality at the Billings, Great Falls, Hamilton, Lewistown, Libby, Malta, and Sleeping Giant monitors was reported as Moderate.
The HRRR model indicates smoke plumes stretching northeast into Helena and north of Whitefish on Thursday afternoon (4pm MDT/22 UTC).
Source: HRRR-smoke
Forecast
Southwesterly winds will direct light to moderate levels of smoke into Helena by this afternoon, though the potential for popup rain may offer relief from smoke late in the day.
Tomorrow, winds will shift to be more westerly and northwesterly, and wind speed across the state will increase. However, much cooler temperatures and widespread precipitation, particularly in the Northwest corner of Montana, may stifle wildfire growth and dampen the effects of smoke.
If fire activity remains constant on Friday, smoke impacts from the Wolf Syrup and Jericho Mountain fires will likely be greatest in the late afternoon between Kalispell and Whitefish and between Montana City and Boulder, respectively.
Over the weekend, cool and wet conditions will persist across much of Montana, which will hopefully aid firefighting efforts.
Conditions can change quickly as weather could stimulate active fires and the likelihood of new starts increases. Please keep track of concentrations at todaysair.mtdeq.us or the Fire and Smoke Map.
Tags: Smoke Forecast 2025