Lehigh Valley weather: Increased risk of fires and hazardous air pollution on Tuesday - lehighvalleylive.com

Lehigh Valley weather: Increased risk of fires and hazardous air pollution on Tuesday - lehighvalleylive.com

Continued dryness will increase the risk of wildfires while a plume of smoke from fires in Canada will worsen air pollution for areas of Pennsylvania and New Jersey on Tuesday.

The National Weather Service has issued a fire weather watch effective all day Tuesday across eastern Pennsylvania and much of New Jersey. The outlook calls for low humidity and a breezy day with sustained winds of 10 to 15 mph and gusts up to 25 mph, which could fuel quick-moving flames.

The watch comes after a brush fire closed Route 33 near Wind Gap on Monday, and as AccuWeather warns of a potential “flash drought”— a mix of dryness, high temperatures, strong wind and long hours of sunlight.

The Lehigh Valley saw just a quarter-inch of rain over the last month and is running almost 3.5 inches below normal on the year.

Meanwhile, drifting smoke from Canadian wildfires could again dip low enough to impact ground-level air quality across the region. The Pennsylvania DEP has declared Tuesday a Code Orange air quality action day for the Lehigh Valley, the Philadelphia area, the Susquehanna Valley and Pittsburgh area.

That means sensitive people like the very young, very old or anyone with respiratory conditions should limit their outdoor time. Others can avoid adding to air pollution by refraining from using fire pits, wood stoves or using gas-powered lawn equipment.

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Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com.