Forest fire smoke prompts air quality warning for B.C. Interior

Smoke from a giant forest fire in northern Washington state has blanketed parts of the B.C. Interior, prompting an air quality warning.

The Tunk Mountain wildfire is burning about 16 kilometres northeast of Omak, Washington, which is about 70 kilometres from the Canada-U.S. border.

The acrid smoke has prompted officials with the Interior Health Authority to issue an air quality advisory.

The air quality has been rated as poor in the Grand Forks region and other communities along the border.

A smoky haze is also drifting along the Thompson and Okanagan valleys as far north as Vernon.

Karlie Shaughnessy, a fire information officer with the B.C. Forest Service, said the Washington fire is more than 6,400 hectares in size and is about 10 per cent contained.