LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – An out-of-area wildland fire – and not the Clayton fire – is the cause of the hazy air conditions over Lake County, according to the Lake County Air Quality Management District.

Lake County Air Pollution Control Officer Doug Gearhart said the Cedar Fire in the Sequoia National Forest near Bakersfield is primarily responsible for the smoke and haze currently visible throughout Lake County.

The Cedar fire began Tuesday, and by early Saturday had burned 12,790 acres and was 5-percent contained, according to the US Forest Service.

Satellite imagery showed extreme levels of smoke generation drifting into the San Joaquin and Sacramento Valleys. Gearhart said smoke can be expected to intrude into all of Lake County, with potential for moderate to unhealthy for sensitive individuals possible through the weekend.

Gearhart said the district is implementing an air monitoring plan Clayton fire recovery area and is monitoring for the transport smoke impacts. 

Current air quality in most of the county including Clearlake is generally considered good to moderate, though conditions in localized areas could reach unhealthy for sensitive individuals through the weekend, according to Gearhart.

Unhealthy air quality in the Clayton fire recovery area may result during and after repopulation due to the disturbance of ash and dust, Gearhart said.

Gearhart said exposure to ash and particulate from the fire can cause irritation of the eyes, nose and air passages, which can be hazardous in young children, the elderly, individuals with heart conditions or chronic lung disease such as asthma, bronchitis and other respiratory conditions. 

He urged community members to take precautions to minimize their exposure and to prevent exposing the community to the ash and dust in the burn area.

Localized areas of unhealthy air, regional haze and particulate from the Clayton fire are expected to continue throughout Lake County through the weekend until the weather pattern changes pushing the transported smoke back toward the Sacramento Valley, Gearhart said.