Bad air quality streak to end Wednesday after nearly 20 days of Spare the Air alerts in Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- First came the heat, then came the wildfires, prompting the Bay Area Air Quality Management District to declare Spare the Air alerts for nearly 20 straight days.

RELATED: Here's why smoke and air quality are still so bad, even as Bay Area fire containment grows

"Welcome to our 18th consecutive Spare the Air day," said ABC7 News meteorologist Mike Nicco. "There will be a concentration of smoke everywhere Monday, a little less as you head into the South Bay."

The Bay Area will wake up to unhealthy air Tuesday, especially in the North Bay.

"But as the air becomes a little more erratic, we will have more pockets of unhealthy air Tuesday afternoon instead of it being widespread," said Nicco.

RELATED: Track air quality levels impacted by smoke from San Francisco Bay Area wildfires

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Nicco says the air quality is expected to improve on Wednesday when a high pressure system starts to take over.

"The sea breeze is also going to kick in a little bit on Wednesday into Thursday," said Nicco. "Those two days look to be our coolest and likely our cleanest days."

Unfortunately, Nicco's Accuweather forecast shows the potential for unhealthy air this weekend.

"On Saturday, temperatures are expected to soar, well above average, from 70 in San Francisco to a sprinkling of 100s inland. Triple digit temperatures spread Sunday for our hottest day," said Nicco. "Even though we cool a little bit on Monday for Labor Day, it is still going to be warmer than average."

The Bay area has been in a haze for weeks.

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A late summer heat wave arrived in full force in mid August, prompting the Spare the Air streak to begin on August 14.

Things escalated when a fierce summer storm packed a punch, bringing a non-stop lightning show to all parts of the Bay Area.

Firefighters say all that lightning combined with extreme heat sparked multiple wildfires. The first Spare the Air day from the fires started August 18.

Check here to see how long Spare the Air Alerts will be in effect.

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Watch the latest AccuWeather forecast and take a look at recent weather stories and videos.

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