Here’s why you can smell wildfire smoke in the NWT

The smell of a distant Alberta wildfire is settling across some regions of the North Slave, South Slave, and Dehcho.

A wildfire south of High Level is the source of the smoke, according to a national fire smoke forecasting service supported by federal and provincial governments.

The projection shows smoke drifting from that fire and a second, near Manning, up and across much of the southern Northwest Territories.

The forecast suggests Hay River will be particularly smoky overnight on Sunday into Monday, while Yellowknife is likely to bear the brunt of the smoke on Monday afternoon.

The smoke is expected to be pushed west toward the Dehcho on Tuesday, though some could linger around the North and South Slave.

Currently, there are no territorial government advisories regarding significant wildfires within the territory itself.

As of last Monday, there had been seven reported wildfires in the NWT so far this year – two of which were still burning and being monitored.

The High Level fire poses no immediate threat to the community, the Alberta government said on Sunday afternoon.

The fire is burning west of Alberta Highway 35 and south of Highway 58, and moving gradually northwest. The province advised residents to “remain vigilant.”