Las Vegas Valley shrouded in haze

Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2005 | 8:21 a.m.

Smoke from Southern California wildfires, dust raised by vehicles and summertime smog brewed a pall of haze over the Las Vegas Valley Tuesday.

Light winds brought the smoke from a wildfire near Palm Springs that had grown to more than 5,000 acres Tuesday, National Weather Service meteorologist Charlie Schlott said.

"The smoke comes in at a high level and then settles in and comes down," Schlott said.

Warmer than normal temperatures also contributed to the air murky quality, Schlott said.

Until the winds pick up enough to blow the haze away, the pollution cloud will hand around, Schlott said.

"Compared to New Orleans, we can fight a little smoke," Schlott said.

The air did not register unhealthy at the Clark County Air Quality and Environmental Division's sites around the valley, said Ron Smolinski, a spokesman for the division.

"There's a mild breeze, a little bit of smoke and dust," Smolinski said.

Dr. Jim Christensen, an allergy specialist with offices throughout the Las Vegas Valley, said he had seen no increase in patients on Tuesday.

"Usually it takes a day or two for them to come in," Christensen said.

For very sensitive people, the haze could cause burning eyes, runny noses and scratchy throats, he said.

"That's why they used canaries in coal mines," Christensen said of miners using birds to indicate poor air quality in coal shafts.

The warm, still air allows dust from urban traffic and construction sites to rise and then just sit in the valley, Christensen said.

The summer smog contains ozone, incompletely burned fossil fuels cooked by the sun, combined with smoke from fires and dust, Christensen.

Winds above 25 mph bring other problems for Christensen's patients. "Tremendous winds raise dust clouds and that really brings them into the office," he said.