As something of a weather geek, something was amiss with today’s weather. The tradewinds were blowing steadily between 20 and 30 miles per hour and there was pretty thick haze in the air. We occasionally get hazy weather on Maui, but it is usually associated with still conditions or light southerly winds. Under those conditions, we might get some of Volcanic Haze or Vog that originates to the south on the Big Island. When I was reading tonight’s weather discussion from the National Weather Service, the source of the haze was revealed. While it is hard to imagine, the haze came from last week’s wild fires from Southern California. Remnants of smoke and particles in the air were transported halfway across the Pacific in the trade winds. It was just another perspective on the scope of the fires.

Pete Jalbert