Saskatoon saw its second smokiest July on record.

That’s according to data collected by Environment and Climate Change Canada at the Saskatoon airport.

Meteorologist Crawford Luke says “The record holder is last July, 2024. This July we’ve had 82 hours of smoke so far…Last July, 2024, we had 124 hours.”

Saskatoon saw 183 hours of smoke so far this year, meaning this is the third smokiest year on record, and there is still August and September to go in the heaviest portion of the wildfire season. Records have been kept since 1925.

For Prince Albert, July was the smokiest month on record, not just the smokiest July, at 154 hours of smoke. Also, P-A has experienced the second smokiest year on record with August and September yet to be seen.

Air quality warnings blanket much of northern Saskatchewan Wednesday, and Prince Albert is under an air quality statement due to wildfire smoke. There are currently 81 fires burning in the province, 14 of them are not contained.