Maple Ridge, BC Live Wildfire Smoke Map
Get Alerts For Wildfires In Your Area
The moment a wildfire starts near you, you'll get an instant alert and simple tips to reduce your smoke exposure.
What's In The Smoke
30xSmaller than a human hair
Fine enough to reach deep into the lungs. A MERV 13 is built to capture it.
How Far It Travels
It Doesn't Stay Local
Smoke rides the wind far downwind — you can get smoky air with no fire nearby.
What To Do During A Smoke Event
Simple steps to reduce indoor exposure.
- Stay In, Close UpShut windows and doors to keep smoke out.
- Set Fan To "On"Keeps air cycling through your filter, not just when heating or cooling.
- Recirculate AirSwitch off fresh-air intake so you're not pulling smoke in.
- Run A MERV 13Built to capture the fine PM2.5 in smoke.
- Add A PurifierExtra filtration for the room you use most.
- Wear an N95 if OutsideFits snug to block fine particles — a cloth mask won't.
The Best Air Filter For Wildfire Smoke
During smoke events, the EPA recommends upgrading to a MERV 13 filter — or the highest-rated filter your system can handle — to help reduce the fine particles smoke brings indoors. MERV 13 is the level most home HVAC systems can run while still capturing PM2.5, the fine particulate that makes up the bulk of wildfire smoke.
- Captures PM2.5 particles
- Blocks ash, soot, and smoke odor
- Keeps your indoor air safe—even when the outdoor air is dangerous
- Meets the EPA's recommended rating for filtering fine wildfire smoke particles.
Wildfire Smoke FAQs
Facts About Wildfires
Over 70,000 wildfires burn in the U.S. every year.
Wildfire smoke can travel 1,000+ miles, affecting states that aren't even near the blaze.
Exposure to wildfire smoke can worsen asthma, trigger heart issues, and lead to ER visits.
Indoor air can hold more fine particles during wildfire events unless it's properly filtered.
The EPA advises using MERV 13 filters or portable HEPA air cleaners during wildfire smoke events.
Don't Wait Until The Smoke's Inside.
Use the live wildfire smoke tracker and upgrade your air filters today to protect your lungs and your home.
Shop Filters For Smoke Protection
Live Maple Ridge, BC Forest Wildfire & Smoke Map Today: Local Air Quality Tracking & Indoor Protection Solutions
TL;DR
Maple Ridge, BC sits beside Golden Ears Provincial Park and the 5,157-hectare UBC Malcolm Knapp Research Forest, so smoke arrives two ways: from fires on the city's forest edge and, more often, from haze drifting in from the B.C. Interior. Use the live map above to check fires, smoke, and today's Air Quality Health Index (AQHI). When the AQHI reaches 7, Filterbuy's recommendation is to put a MERV 13 filter in the furnace, set the fan to On, run a portable HEPA air cleaner in each occupied room, and close the house up.
Key Takeaways
Wildfire risk starts close to home. In May 2026, a ground fire burned about 1.5 hectares above Rock Ridge.
MERV 13 is the tier for smoke. Metro Vancouver recommends MERV 13 or higher for homes with built-in ventilation during smoke events.
Canada uses the AQHI, not the U.S. AQI. The AQHI runs from 1 to 10+: 1–3 is low risk, 4–6 moderate, 7–10 high, and above 10 very high.
Is There a Wildfire Near Maple Ridge, BC Today? Check the Live Fire and Smoke Map
Filterbuy's live wildfire map below brings current fires, smoke plumes, and air quality for Maple Ridge and the Fraser Valley into one view. Fire locations come from Natural Resources Canada's Canadian Wildland Fire Information System (CWFIS), and the smoke layer comes from NOAA's Hazard Mapping System. New to smoke maps? Try our smoke map reading guide.
Status check, October 7, 2026: Metro Vancouver lists no active air quality advisories, and EmergencyInfoBC shows no current emergencies for Maple Ridge.
Official Maple Ridge Fire and Smoke Sources to Check Alongside Our Map
For official alerts, check the BC Wildfire Service map, FireSmoke.ca, Metro Vancouver air quality warnings, AirMap, Alert Maple Ridge, and EmergencyInfoBC.
Filterbuy's map is for awareness. For evacuations, follow the City and EmergencyInfoBC.
How to Read the Maple Ridge Smoke Map: AQHI Levels and What to Do at Home
Maple Ridge reports air quality on Canada's Air Quality Health Index (AQHI), a 1-to-10+ scale, and Metro Vancouver posts hourly readings from a Maple Ridge station on AirMap. Many apps show the U.S. AQI (0–500) instead, so the numbers won't match.
Filterbuy's action line is AQHI 7, where the City of Maple Ridge high-risk band begins. At that point, put a MERV 13 filter in the furnace, set the fan to On, run a HEPA air cleaner in each occupied room (bedrooms first), and close the house up. The risk bands are the City's; the action line is ours.
Risk bands: City of Maple Ridge. Home actions and the AQHI 7 action line: Filterbuy.
Where Does Wildfire Smoke in Maple Ridge Come From?
Smoke reaches Maple Ridge from its northern forest edge and from Interior fires.
Local Fires on Maple Ridge's Forest Edge
Coastal rainforest still burns. The UBC Malcolm Knapp Research Forest, on the city's northern edge, names fire as its most important natural disturbance, and a fire there in 1931 burned for more than a month.
It happened again on May 22, 2026, when a ground fire started in the upper Rock Ridge area. About 25 firefighters from the City, the BC Wildfire Service, and UBC held it to roughly 1.5 hectares.
Regional Smoke from the B.C. Interior
Most smoky days start far away: in August 2026, smoke from fires in the South Cariboo, the Southern Interior, and near Boston Bar led Metro Vancouver to issue yellow air quality warnings for Maple Ridge.
Our view on timing: don't wait for July. The BC Wildfire Service now says the traditional core wildfire season is a thing of the past. Filterbuy's advice for Lower Mainland homes: have a MERV 13 installed, and a spare on the shelf, by May.
What to Do Inside Your Maple Ridge Home When Smoke Arrives
Start with Metro Vancouver air quality warnings and any City or health authority advice. Then, at AQHI 7, take these four steps in order.
Put a MERV 13 in the furnace. A MERV 13 filter is your whole-home layer, since the central system moves far more air than any portable unit. EPA recommends MERV 13, or as high as your system can handle, during smoke events (EPA).
Set the thermostat fan to On. Auto filters only while the system heats or cools; On filters around the clock.
Run a portable HEPA air cleaner in each occupied room, bedrooms first. It treats that room harder than the central system can, so run both.
Close the house up. Shut windows, doors, and the fireplace damper, and set any HRV to bring in less smoke, as Metro Vancouver advises. Skip candles, frying, and vacuuming without a HEPA vacuum while smoke is in.
Check the filter often. Replace it when it looks dirty, which during smoke can be well before its normal interval, and keep spares on hand. In Filterbuy's experience, a filter that looked clean at the start of a smoky week can come out dark by the end.
Will a MERV 13 fit my system? Treat it like confirming a size. Check your furnace manual, or ask an HVAC technician, as EPA suggests.
After manufacturing filters for over a decade and serving more than two million households, we have learned that the families who come through a smoke event best are the ones who upgraded before the smoke arrived.
David Heacock, Founder and CEO, Filterbuy
Sizing a portable air cleaner: EPA suggests a smoke CADR (clean air delivery rate) of at least two-thirds of the room's square footage, so a 300 sq ft bedroom needs a CADR of about 200. Pick a CARB-certified unit; EPA advises against ozone-producing air cleaners (EPA).
Which Setup Fits a Maple Ridge Home Like Yours?
Furnace homes should run both layers: MERV 13 in the system and a HEPA cleaner in each occupied room. In homes without ducts, portable HEPA air cleaners are your primary tool. A DIY box fan air cleaner with a MERV 13 filter is a fair stopgap, though a certified unit is better; EPA says to use a UL- or ETL-marked fan made since 2012 and never leave an older fan running unattended. More in our room-by-room smoke plan.
Filterbuy recommendation. Check settings in your equipment manual.
What MERV Rating Do You Need for Wildfire Smoke in Maple Ridge?
MERV 13. It's the tier on Filterbuy's ladder we recommend for smoke, and EPA separately recommends MERV 13 or higher in a central system during smoke events. See our best HVAC filter for wildfire smoke guide. HEPA belongs in portable air cleaners, not furnace slots (MERV 13 vs. HEPA).
Filterbuy ladder descriptors. MERV 8 and MERV 11 are not our recommendation for wildfire smoke.
Before ordering a spare, check all three numbers on your current filter; Filterbuy's manufacturing team sees depth ordered wrong more than any other dimension. Learn how to measure your air filter, then shop MERV 13 air filters in your size from more than 600, built in Filterbuy's U.S. factories.
The one to ask first is whether the filter you are holding actually fills the slot. A rating describes the media, not the gap around it.
Michelle Wan, Brand Manager and Air Quality Writer, Filterbuy
Supporting Statistics: Canadian Research on Wildfire Smoke
1. B.C.'s Worst Fire Season Burned 10 Times the 20-Year Average
In 2023, 2,245 wildfires burned 2,840,545 hectares of British Columbia, 10 times the 20-year average of 284,001 hectares. The Coastal Fire Centre, which covers Maple Ridge, logged 365.
Source: BC Wildfire Service, Wildfire Season Summary, Province of British Columbia (gov.bc.ca)
2. Wildfire Smoke Contributes to Up to 2,500 Deaths a Year in Canada
Health Canada estimates that between 2013 and 2018, wildfire smoke contributed to up to 240 deaths a year from short-term exposure and up to 2,500 from long-term exposure.
Source: Health Canada, Human Health Effects of Wildfire Smoke: Report Summary (canada.ca)
3. Portable Air Cleaners Cut Indoor PM2.5 by 56% on Average
In 2025, the National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health, working with Health Canada, reviewed 17 studies and found portable air cleaners cut indoor PM2.5 by 56% on average, or 64% when outdoor PM2.5 topped Canada's 24-hour standard of 27 µg/m³.
Source: Sarah Henderson, NCCEH Scientific Director, My Ongoing Love Affair with Portable Air Cleaners, National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health (ncceh.ca), June 18, 2025
Frequently Asked Questions
Is There a Forest Fire in Maple Ridge, BC Right Now?
Check our live forest fire and smoke map, then the BC Wildfire Service map. To report a wildfire, call 1-800-663-5555 or *5555 from a cell phone, and call 9-1-1 if a fire threatens people or homes.
Does a MERV 13 Filter Remove the Smoky Smell?
No. Smoke odour is a gas, and pleated filters capture particles. If odour is the concern, look at Filterbuy's Odor Eliminator line, which adds an activated carbon layer.
Can I Buy Filterbuy Air Filters in Maple Ridge, BC?
Yes. Canadian homeowners can order from Filterbuy.ca, Filterbuy's Canadian store, which carries MERV 8, MERV 11, MERV 13, and Odor Eliminator filters, plus custom sizes.
Glossary
AQHI (Air Quality Health Index): Canada's health-based air quality scale, from 1 (low risk) to 10+ (very high risk).
PM2.5: Fine smoke and dust particles 2.5 microns or smaller, the main particle pollutant in wildfire smoke.
MERV (Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value): An ASHRAE 1–16 rating of how well an HVAC filter captures particles by size.
HEPA: A filter standard for portable air cleaners that captures at least 99.97% of 0.3-micron particles.
HRV (heat recovery ventilator): A system that swaps stale indoor air for fresh outdoor air while keeping most of the heat.
Get Your Maple Ridge Home Ready Before the Next Smoke Event
Get ready before smoke season: bookmark this map, sign up for Metro Vancouver air quality warnings, and keep a spare MERV 13, or let Filterbuy auto-delivery send one when due.
Sources
City of Maple Ridge, City Advancing FireSmart Initiatives and Reminds Residents to Be Wildfire Ready, May 27, 2026
City of Maple Ridge, Rock Ridge Area Fire Updates, May 22–25, 2026
City of Maple Ridge, Air Quality Readiness
City of Maple Ridge, Yellow Air Quality Warning Issued for Maple Ridge, August 2026
Metro Vancouver, Air Quality Data and Advisories and AirMap
Metro Vancouver air quality warning, August 6, 2026, as reported by The Weather Network
UBC Malcolm Knapp Research Forest, History
U.S. EPA, What is a MERV rating? (ASHRAE Standard 52.2 values)
BC Wildfire Service, Wildfire Situation Map; FireSmoke.ca, BlueSky Canada Smoke Forecast; EmergencyInfoBC
BC Lung Foundation and SFU, The BREATHE Project: DIY Air Cleaners
BC Wildfire Service, Wildfire Season Summary
U.S. EPA, Reduce Your Smoke Exposure, July 2026
U.S. EPA, How to Create a Cleaner Air Room at Home, July 2026
Health Canada, Human Health Effects of Wildfire Smoke: Report Summary, June 2024
National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health, My Ongoing Love Affair with Portable Air Cleaners, June 18, 2025