Maryland braces for worst air quality since 2023 as Canadian wildfire smoke moves in

Thursday morning’s hazy skies in Maryland are expected to worsen Friday as smoke from large wildfires in central Canada drifts into the state, forecasters said.

A thicker plume of smoke moving southeast from Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania is expected to spread across Maryland, with the heaviest concentrations in the western portion of the state. Light winds will prevent the smoke from dispersing quickly and allow it to linger over much of the state, said James Boyle, an air quality forecaster with the Maryland Department of the Environment.

“There is nothing that drives the smoke anywhere,” Boyle said.

Western Maryland will experience the worst air quality in the state as the smoke blanketing Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania on Thursday moves here, Boyle said. The sky was orange and visibility low in many of those states this week.

The most western counties in Maryland will be placed under a Code Purple alert, meaning the conditions are “very unhealthy” and could have serious health implications for everyone, said Jay Apperson, spokesperson for the state’s Department of Environment.

The rest of the state is expected to be under a Code Red alert, which is less extreme but still means the air will be unhealthy.

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The last time wildfire smoke from Canada rolled into Maryland was the summer of 2023, when it blanketed parts of the state for days. Although the concentration of particulate matter is lower this time, it may stick around longer, said Joel Dreessen, a meteorologist at the Department of the Environment.

Much of Maryland was under a Code Orange alert Thursday as a “major wave of smoke” from Ontario began to enter the area.

Code Orange means that “sensitive groups, which includes children, the elderly, and people with respiratory or heart conditions,” should limit time outdoors.

Maryland summers have seen a decrease in Code Orange days, according to a Department of the Environment seasonal report, but Code Red days have been slightly more frequent since 2023. The department issued four Code Red air quality alerts in summer 2023, one in summer 2024 and one in June 2026, according to state data.

When the air quality is unhealthy, people should limit time outdoors, according to MDE. People who need to be outdoors for an extended period should wear a mask.

The triple-digit temperatures in Maryland are a “huge compounding factor” regarding air quality concerns, Dreessen said, though he was hopeful that storms forecast for Thursday can mitigate some of impact of the smoke.

Residents of Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York and New Jersey, along with the Great Lakes region, experienced heavier smoke Wednesday, which turned the sun orange and caused low visibility. Those conditions are comparable to what Marylanders will experience Friday, Dreessen said. Some people may be able to smell the smoke outdoors, he added.

The heat index in Maryland is also expected to break triple digits Thursday, according to the National Weather Service. Baltimore was placed under a Code Red extreme heat alert, which activated cooling centers and extended pool hours.