Smoke along Okanagan Lake was seen Sept. 16 in Kelowna.

(CARLI BERRY / iNFOnews.ca)

A special air quality statement remains in effect today as wildfire smoke from south of the border continues to hang over southern B.C., but conditions are expected to improve this weekend.

Environment Canada's smoke skies bulletin said smoke from the wildfires in Washington State, Oregon and California continues to impact the southern half of the province. Impacts in the south will be greater in magnitude than the north.

The good news is air quality should begin to improve over the weekend, according to Environment Canada meteorologist Doug Lundquist.

"Things are starting to clean up on the coast already. We have a system moving in all the way from Roseburg, Oregon to west of Tofino. So showers south of the border, (and cooler weather) will stir things up and I'm pretty sure by (Saturday) afternoon there won't be much smoke left around here in the Interior, at least in the southwest Interior and maybe an extra half a day in the southeast," Lundquist said.

There could be showers and thunderstorms tonight, Sept. 18, and tomorrow in Kamloops and the Okanagan, with sunshine expected from Sunday to Tuesday and temperatures into the low 20s. The sunny weather is expected to persist until the midweek, when we might see showers and typical fall weather.

According to B.C.'s air quality index, the heath risk in the Central and South Okanagan remains high today, with the North Okanagan and Kamloops region's air quality having a moderate health risk.

"If you or those in your care are exposed to wildfire smoke, consider taking extra precautions to reduce your exposure," the bulletin reads. "Wildfire smoke is a constantly-changing mixture of particles and gasses which includes many chemicals that can harm your health."

For more information on the impact of wildfire smoke go to Environment Canada's website here.

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