The sun was an angry red in Topaz Ranch Estates this morning.
John Flaherty | Special to The R-C
Smoke from the Quarry fire burning near Strawberry took a hard right across southern Douglas and northern Mono counties this morning.
Airnow.gov indicates air quality near Markleeville is in the unhealthy range as of 10 a.m. today with an index of 163.
A sensor at Bodie Flat is indicating unhealthy for sensitive groups with an index of 121, spiking at 10 a.m. Coleville was at 137 as of 10 a.m.
The Quarry fire is at 4,737 acres as of 10 p.m. Thursday, growing 2,050 acres.
Foresters have been using a drone to set low-intensity fires on the northeast edge south. The most recent hot spots are 3-6-hours old, according to the Fire Information for Resource Management System.
The site of the fire is near where a winter weather advisory has been issued for the Sierra above 8,000 feet.
Smoke from the fire could clear on Saturday as west winds pick up in advance of the storm.
“As southwest winds increase this afternoon, a narrower and more concentrated smoke plume could spread into norther Mono, southern Lyon and Mineral counties later this afternoon and evening,” National Weather Service Meteorologist Mark Deutschendorf said. “For this weekend, additional smoke from this fire should remain west of the Sierra crest with wind directions shifting more to the northwest and north.”
