DES MOINES, Iowa — Des Moines residents waking up Wednesday noticed the smell of smoke and a haze in the air. Unlike last week's air quality and visibility issues caused by Canadian wildfires, Wednesday's smoky haze is caused by something more local.
The root cause is likely driftwood burning near Saylorville Lake, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
"The lake maintenance crew is burning driftwood collected from the shoreline that had recently accumulated due to the high water. This burning is being done with a county permit and should complete today," U.S. Army Corps of Engineers representative Allen Marshall said.
The Des Moines Fire Department told Local 5 they sent officials out to investigate the source of the scent and smoke around 5 a.m., but crews did not find anything.
Per the National Weather Service Des Moines, "The smoke should be close to the source given the inversion and light flow [winds]". That was around 4:30 a.m., before we were made aware of the root cause.
Des Moines recorded the worst air quality in the U.S. around 5:30 a.m. Wednesday, but air quality will continue to improve as the temperature increases and the inversion lifts.
Local 5 will update this story as more information becomes available. Download the We Are Iowa app or subscribe to Local 5's "5 Things to Know" email newsletter for the latest.
