Smoke from California fires drifts into city

Layers of drift smoke from fires in Central and Northern California blanketed much of Riverside County today, blocking the sun in Palm Springs in what was tantamount to heavy cloud cover.

The South Coast Air Quality Management District did not immediately issue any advisories, but the haze was clearly visible in the Coachella Valley, as seen in the above video captured by NBC Palm Springs meteorologist Jerry Steffen.

According to Cal Fire, there are three active wildfires in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and farther north, there are at least a half-dozen wildland blazes.

As of 3 PM, winds at 14 miles per hour were blowing from the southeast at Palm Springs international Airport.