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Smoky air wafting into Utah from Canadian wildfires

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Smoky air wafting into Utah from Canadian wildfires


SALT LAKE CITY — When the mountain peaks are not visible from the middle of the valley, there’s pollution in the air.

On Saturday, Utah got a hefty dose of smoky air in the moderately unhealthy range from wildfires burning in Canada. But, according to a smoke scientist from the University of Utah, this isn’t a typical weather pattern for Utah, so we shouldn’t be stuck with this bad air for too long.

“You can see how the smoke is being kind of pulled down towards the south,” explained Derek Mallia, a research assistant professor at the University of Utah who studies the impact of wildfires on our air quality.

“We’re getting winds coming from the north, transporting that smoke down to the south across areas like Utah, Colorado,” he continued.

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The smoky air is wafting across the plains, into the upper Midwest. Fortunately, Utah is not getting the worst of it.

“The worst air quality, though, is probably located across the front range of Colorado in Denver,” Mallia said.

This is not a typical weather pattern. More often, Utah’s smoky air blows in from California, Oregon, and Washington. It’s also unusual to have such large wildfires in May because fuels have not dried. But, unlike our winter, Alberta had a dry winter.

Wildfires in Alberta off to an exponentially fast start compared to recent years

“This is why they’re seeing a lot of wildfire activity across this area,” the researcher said.

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Mallia said the massive smoke plume also creates pyrocumulonimbus clouds, which are fire-generated thunderstorms. The fire releases enough heat energy that it creates its own weather.

“It’s really efficient at lofting smoke from the fire at the surface, very high up into the atmosphere, which increases the likelihood that I can get injected within the jet stream,” he said.

Once the smoke is in the jet stream we can travel a long distance before it disperses.

“The smoke plume is basically hitting the top of the atmosphere,” Mallia said. “That is where most of our weather resides. So basically, it hits the top of the atmosphere, and spreads out kind of like a pancake.“

The smoke scientist developed a five-day smoke forecast model with a colleague, that is still in the testing phase but provides good information. He believes the worst of the smoke will only be with us for a couple more days.

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Utah

Storm Blair: Watch moment avalanche barrels down Utah mountain

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Storm Blair: Watch moment avalanche barrels down Utah mountain


Heavy snowfall in Utah caused an avalanche that was captured on camera from a nearby vehicle in Little Cottonwood Canyon.

Local media reported that up to five inches (12.7cm) of snow fell in the area, causing the avalanche and stranding skiers for a while.

Seven US states have declared a state of emergency as Storm Blair sweeps through.



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Atlanta plays Utah, aims to stop road losing streak

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Atlanta plays Utah, aims to stop road losing streak


Associated Press

Atlanta Hawks (18-18, seventh in the Eastern Conference) vs. Utah Jazz (9-25, 14th in the Western Conference)

Salt Lake City; Tuesday, 9 p.m. EST

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BOTTOM LINE: Atlanta will aim to break its three-game road skid when the Hawks face Utah.

The Jazz have gone 2-12 at home. Utah allows the most points in the Western Conference, giving up 118.4 points and is allowing opponents to shoot 47.8%.

The Hawks are 8-11 on the road. Atlanta is eighth in the league with 12.1 offensive rebounds per game led by Clint Capela averaging 3.3.

The Jazz are shooting 46.1% from the field this season, 1.5 percentage points lower than the 47.6% the Hawks allow to opponents. The Hawks average 117.1 points per game, 1.3 fewer than the 118.4 the Jazz allow.

TOP PERFORMERS: John Collins is averaging 17.9 points and 8.3 rebounds for the Jazz.

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Jalen Johnson is averaging 19.8 points, 10.1 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.5 steals for the Hawks.

LAST 10 GAMES: Jazz: 4-6, averaging 114.7 points, 47.6 rebounds, 25.3 assists, 7.2 steals and 4.9 blocks per game while shooting 46.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 116.0 points per game.

Hawks: 4-6, averaging 118.1 points, 43.3 rebounds, 29.3 assists, 11.2 steals and 5.1 blocks per game while shooting 47.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 121.4 points.

INJURIES: Jazz: Keyonte George: out (heel), John Collins: out (personal), Jordan Clarkson: day to day (plantar ), Taylor Hendricks: out for season (fibula), Lauri Markkanen: out (back).

Hawks: Kobe Bufkin: out for season (shoulder), Larry Nance Jr.: out (hand), Bogdan Bogdanovic: day to day (leg), Jalen Johnson: out (shoulder), Cody Zeller: day to day (personal).

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.




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Missing woman found dead in Utah; police looking for her 'violent' ex-boyfriend – East Idaho News

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Missing woman found dead in Utah; police looking for her 'violent' ex-boyfriend – East Idaho News


SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (KSL.com) — Unified police on Saturday located the body of a missing woman in a remote location in Tooele County. The woman was murdered, police say, and now they are looking for her “violent ex-boyfriend” in connection with her death.

On Thursday, the family of Talia Benward reported to Unified police that she was missing.

“As the investigation developed and evidence was gathered, it became evident Talia Benward was either being held against her will by a violent ex-boyfriend or was deceased,” Unified police said in a statement Sunday.

Beginning in the early morning hours on Saturday, police searched a remote area of Tooele County where they thought she could be. The large area is “covered with tall brush and cedar trees” and was being conducted in “nearly total darkness and frigid snowy conditions.”

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Benward’s body was located at 5:20 a.m. Saturday with the assistance of the Salt Lake City and Weber County K-9 teams, police said.

“Preliminarily, it appears the victim may have suffered from blunt force trauma and trauma to her neck area,” the statement says.

The Unified Police Department is treating Benward’s death as a homicide and is asking for the public’s help in locating Nestor Rocha-Aguayo, 24, of West Valley City, who they say is a person of interest. Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 801-840-4000.

“We do believe he is still in Salt Lake County and are asking individuals to not confront him but to call police,” the statement says.

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