Advertisement

Las Vegas: Wildfire sparks air quality advisory, cancels fundraiser

Smoke from the Carpenter 1 fire in the Spring Mountains billows behind the Las Vegas Strip on Tuesday.
(Ethan Miller / AFP Getty Images)
Share

A large wildfire burning in the mountains northwest of Las Vegas has prompted authorities to issue an air quality advisory through Sunday.

Billowing plumes of smoke are visible both from the Strip and downtown Las Vegas. The Clark County Department of Air Quality issued the advisory Monday afternoon, noting in a news release that “unhealthy levels of air pollution are not expected to occur.”

This week’s forecast does not include any significant change in air quality.

Advertisement

The department, however, issued a caution for at-risk individuals.

“It may be best for children, the elderly and people with respiratory diseases to stay indoors,” the advisory noted. It added that such people should consider wearing painter’s masks or surgical masks outdoors.

The fire had burned more than 15,000 acres in the Spring Mountains by Tuesday morning, according to information posted on the wildfire Incident Information Service website. Officials don’t expect full containment until July 19.

State highways 156 and 157 leading to the area are closed at their junctions with U.S. 95 north of Las Vegas. There is no access to the recreational areas in the region, including those on Mt. Charleston.

The wildfire forced the postponement of the “Rock the Canyon” fundraising event scheduled for this weekend at the Las Vegas Ski & Snowboard Resort. The resort, which offers chairlift rides among its summertime activities, has been closed since July 4, when flames crested the mountaintop and spread into the forests on the eastern side of the range.

More than 500 residents have been evacuated.

Follow us on Twitter @latimestravel and like us on Facebook

Advertisement