Where are the fires that are sending smoke to the SF Bay Area?

The Anvil Fire ignited some 7.5 miles east of the coastal town of Port Orford on Aug. 25, according to the U.S. Forest Service. The fire was 14,569 acres with no containment as of Wednesday morning.

Oregon station KDRV-TV reported on Tuesday that the Anvil Fire is the most concerning fire in the nation right now. Evacuation orders were issued due to this fire.

Some smoke is also drifting from Oregon’s Flat Fire, which is burning just southeast of the Anvil Fire and was 34,242 acres with 75% containment on Wednesday. 

The 2023 SRF Lightning Complex and Redwood Lightning Complex is a series of fires in Humboldt and Del Norte counties mainly burning in the Six Rivers National Forest. In total, the fires have burned 28,829 acres, as of Wednesday, according to the Forest Service. Containment stands at 7%. Fires within this complex include the Pearch Fire, Bluff #1 and Mosquito fires and the Blue Creek #2 and Marlow fires. Many of the fires in this complex were started by lightning strikes in August. 

Smoke from these fires was carried into the San Francisco Bay Area on Tuesday by northerly winds high in the atmosphere. The National Weather Service forecasts that the smoke will linger into Friday. Winds will likely shift Friday afternoon, pushing the smoke east. Get the full smoke forecast from SFGATE.