DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 2330Z September 20, 2026
SMOKE: Washington/British Columbia… Fires in north-central Washington State and southern British Columbia were observed producing light-to-heavy density smoke drifting northeastward within the province and westward into the Strait of Georgia. The Sisi Fire was also observed producing light-to-moderate density smoke drifting eastward and southward. A layer of remnant light-density smoke extended southwestward off the coasts of British Columbia, Washington, and Oregon into the Pacific Ocean. Northern Canada… A layer of remnant light-density smoke was observed extending northeastward across eastern Nunavut before drifting southeastward into the Davis Strait. A separate layer of remnant light-density smoke spanned over much of northeastern British Columbia, northwestern Alberta, the Northwest Territories, and western Nunavut. California… Despite significant cloud cover in central California this evening, the Dome Fire was observed generating a light-to-heavy density smoke plume. Heavy-density smoke concentrated near the source, while light-to-moderate density smoke extended northwestward. Caribbean… A fire in southwestern Dominican Republic was observed producing a light-density smoke plume drifting west-northwestward across Haiti into the Caribbean Sea. Southeastern CONUS… Multiple isolated fires were observed across the southeastern United States, concentrated in Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, and eastern Texas. These fires produced individual smoke plumes ranging in various densities that generally drifted northward or northeastward. Smoke from these fires produced a regional layer of medium-density smoke that drifted southward across Alabama and Mississippi before dispersing into the northern Gulf of America. A layer of light-density smoke extended from central Texas across much of the eastern United States, ultimately drifting eastward over the Atlantic Ocean. Mexico/Gulf of America/Pacific Ocean… A layer of light-density smoke from fires and industrial activity was observed in the Gulf coastal region, extending eastward into the Gulf of America, southward into the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, and westward across central Mexico before drifting into the Pacific Ocean. A layer of moderate-density smoke was also observed in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, extending northward into the Bay of Campeche and southward into the Pacific Ocean. GL THIS TEXT PRODUCT IS PRIMARILY INTENDED TO DESCRIBE SIGNIFICANT AREAS OF SMOKE ASSOCIATED WITH ACTIVE FIRES AND SMOKE WHICH HAS BECOME DETACHED FROM THE FIRES AND DRIFTED SOME DISTANCE AWAY FROM THE SOURCE FIRE, TYPICALLY OVER THE COURSE OF ONE OR MORE DAYS. AREAS OF BLOWING DUST ARE ALSO DESCRIBED. USERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO VIEW A GRAPHIC DEPICTION OF THESE AND OTHER PLUMES WHICH ARE LESS EXTENSIVE AND STILL ATTACHED TO THE SOURCE FIRE IN VARIOUS GRAPHIC FORMATS ON OUR WEB SITE: JPEG map: https://www.ospo.noaa.gov/data/land/fire/currenthms.jpg Smoke data: https://satepsanone.nesdis.noaa.gov/pub/FIRE/web/HMS/Smoke_Polygons Fire data: https://satepsanone.nesdis.noaa.gov/pub/FIRE/web/HMS/Fire_Points ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS REGARDING THIS PRODUCT SHOULD BE SENT TO: SSDFireTeam@noaa.gov