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The weather didn’t pan out as forecasters had hoped. That means smoke should stick around until the end of this week. And, it’s not only the skies that are choked with the unhealthy levels of smoke.

Labor Day 2020 lived up to its name if you’re a firefighter. It was a day that set up for numerous fires in central and eastern Washington that have burned tens of thousands of acres, and possibly many more. At least 80 fires started in Washington in what officials call a historic fire event.

A Facebook page called “Baby Yoda fights fires” has been documenting his journey and spreading joy far beyond the fire lines. More than 30,000 people and counting are following the page as he travels from crew to crew.

The Northwest is primed for fire season, and not in a good way. East of the Cascades, forecasters say this year could be worse than recent record-breaking fire seasons.

The National Weather Serivce is warning of extreme fire danger Tuesday night and Wednesday. Lightning storms, dry conditions and winds are expected to combine Tuesday evening and Wednesday, priming Eastern Washington and North Idaho for wildfires.

First a drought. Then record heat. Now Washington Gov. Jay Inslee has declared a statewide wildfire state of emergency.

“Wildfire is presenting an imminent threat to life, property, and the environment, and we need all hands on deck,” Gov. Brad Little said in a statement. “I appreciate our firefighters and fire managers for working so hard under such challenging conditions, and I am grateful that our guardsmen are able to step in once again to support Idaho communities.”

New study shows how N95 masks help keep smoke particles out of your lungs.

The Cow Canyon fire, burning near the border of Yakima and Kittitas counties, is now 60% contained. Joel Brumm, public information officer for the fire incident command team, says crews have continued to make progress on the containment lines and extinguishing residual fire to reduce spread.

The Williams Lake fire, burning just Southwest of Spokane, is now 100% contained. Crews working the blaze began departing on Wednesday, says Eric Keller, public information officer on the scene. The fire was downgraded to a type four incident today.