Montana
Longer fire season in Montana means more days with low air quality
BILLINGS — Much of Montana might be covered in smoke and haze due to the wildfires in Idaho, but it’s something the state has seen all summer. According to a study conducted by the U.S. Forest Service, wildfire season in Montana has grown longer, contributing to more days with lower air quality.
For Billings resident Holly Caufield, the hazy air meant a change in plans.
“We were going to go paddleboarding, but it was kind of gross and hazy, so we decided, I don’t know, it was just kind of depressing,” said Caufield at the Billings Rims Monday.
Mother Nature had different plans, which meant Caufield opted to walk her dog Maze on the Rims.
Justin McKinsey/MTN News
“Just kind of depressing. Gross, muggy, kind of makes us tired. Headaches,” Caufield said.
That’s true for people across much of the state with the smoke affecting communities from Missoula to Miles City.
“In the central part of the state, it’s at the unhealthy level right now… right now we’ve just moved into, we’re approaching unhealthy levels in the Billings area,” said Billings National Weather Service meteorologist John Wetenkamp.
Wetenkamp said longer fire seasons mean hazier skies in Big Sky Country.
“There’s been an uptick in fire activity, so yeah, most likely we’re experiencing more days of poor air quality than we have, historically, just do the uptick in wildfires,” Wetenkamp said.
Alina Hauter/MTN News
According to a study recently conducted by the U.S. Forest Service, fire seasons have grown significantly longer with the length of fire weather season increasing 18.7% from 1979 to 2013.
Some forests in Montana have seen fire season lengthen by 36 days on average each year. In Eastern Montana, including the site of this year’s massive Remington Fire, fire season is 42 days longer compared to 30 years ago.
“A lot of that has to do with changes in precipitation patterns, warmer temperatures, and also just us as a society becoming more vulnerable to wildfire and wildfire impacts as the population increases in some of the more fire-prone areas,” said Wetenkamp.
More fire means more smoke, and in the case of Caufield, more headaches, even though her dogs might not mind.
“They like it, they enjoy it, I don’t think it really bothers them,” Caufield said.
Where Khloe Kardashian Stands With Ex French Montana More Than 10 Years After Breakup
French Montana is done keeping up with reality TV.
In fact, he only agreed to appear on Keeping Up With The Kardashians and Kourtney & Khloé Take the Hamptons over a decade ago as a favor to then-girlfriend Khloe Kardashian.
“She said to get on the show,” he exclusively told E! News at the BET Awards on June 28. “And I got on the show. Shout out to Khloe.”
The “Ever Since U Left Me” rapper, who split with Kardashian in December 2014 after eight months of dating, said the experience was “fun” because her family kept it real.
“They filmed their real life,” he continued. “And we were part of something together that one time. So it felt great. It didn’t feel like work because they film what they do everyday.”
As for his future in reality TV, the 41-year-old said those days are over, shutting down any prospective offers with a simple, “Negative.”
Although the “Unforgettable” artist—whose real name is Karim Kharbouch—may not be returning to television anytime soon, he has no problem hanging out with his ex-girlfriend these days.
French Montana, Rick Ross & Max B Turn the BET Awards Into “
06/28/2026
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