For much of last week, Seattle’s familiar summer skyline looked noticeably different as a layer of wildfire smoke settled across the Puget Sound region. This was due to wind currents carrying smoke over from fires burning throughout Washington. Air quality alerts were issued for King, Kitsap, Pierce and Snohomish counties, while areas closer to the Cascade foothills, including North Bend and Fall City, approached or exceeded an Air Quality Index of 200. At that level, the air is considered unhealthy to very unhealthy.
The smoke is part of the active 2026 wildfire season as Washington entered the summer with many favorable wildfire conditions, like a low winter snowpack, a warm spring, and increasingly hot and dry summer weather. More than 300,000 acres have already burned across Washington this year. By late July, scientists were warning that Washington had reached dangerous fire conditions roughly a month earlier than normal. Dry vegetation provides fuel for fires, while heat, low humidity and wind helps them spread rapidly.
However, we shouldn’t simply call 2026 an unusually bad year. Although wildfire seasons vary considerably from year-to-year, in the past three decades the PNW has shown rising temperatures, declining snowpack and increasingly active fire seasons.
Climate change doesn’t start individual fires, as many Washington wildfires are caused by people,but warmer and drier conditions can make the landscape more capable of supporting large, intense fires once they begin.
Historically, western Washington’s wetter climate offered some protection from the worst wildfire conditions, but smoky summers have become increasingly common. Wildfire smoke contains fine particles known as PM2.5, which are small enough to enter the lungs and bloodstream. For locals, future summers may mean checking air quality alongside temperature before exercising, hiking or spending long periods of time outside.
Seattle won’t necessarily experience severe smoke every summer because wind direction, fire location and rainfall still make each season different, but the conditions that produce large wildfires are becoming more common. For a region known for mild, clear summers, smoke may become another seasonal hazard residents will learn to plan around.
