Northwest smoke blamed on Russian fires

MEDFORD, Ore. (AP) — Smoke in the hills of the Rogue Valley and elsewhere in the Northwest can be blamed on more than 60 fires burning on Russia’s eastern coast.

The Medford Mail Tribune reports ( http://bit.ly/Namvsl ) winds are pushing the smoke across the Pacific Ocean, where it had been hovering for several days.

Reports of heavy smoke have emerged from Medford north to Vancouver, B.C.

National Weather Service meteorologist Marc Spilde says the thick cloud layer above the ocean makes differentiating the incoming smoke from the clouds difficult.

Spilde says the weather service doesn’t anticipate downgrading the air quality in Southern Oregon because of the smoke.

Sixty-seven fires were burning near Lake Baikal and on the Kamchatka Peninsula on Russia’s eastern coast