More rain = less smoke

COEUR d’ALENE — Smoke over the region is putting up a good fight, but it’ll likely lose the battle.

That’s the prediction of Press meteorolgist Randy Mann.

“We’re expecting the smoke to clear out over the next day or so with scattered showers and thunderstorms likely,” Mann said Friday.

Mann said the strongest moist system will arrive tonight and Sunday.

“Rain totals, counting Friday, will likely be from half an inch to an inch around the region,” he said, adding that the average August total for Coeur d’Alene is 1.23 inches. “There’s an outside chance we could get an amount close to that, especially if one of those thunderstorms drops a lot of rain at once.”

Next week, he said, looks dry and warmer.

“We’ll probably get a few more 90-degree days before the summer comes to a close, but we think we’ve seen the hottest part of the season,” he said.