The Brief Dense wildfire smoke, primarily from the nearby Little Giant Fire, pushed Leavenworth's air quality far past traditional index maximums, causing throat and eye irritation for residents and tourists. Suffocating smoke from active wildfires east of the Cascades has pushed air quality in Leavenworth far past traditional index maximums. The hazardous air quality forced some local businesses to close, and triggered a brief, temporary public transit shutdown in the valley. Off-the-charts air quality readingsThe standard U.S. Air Quality Index (AQI) caps its scale at 500 for "Hazardous" conditions. Under Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) safety rules, regional public transit operations must temporarily shut down whenever the AQI reaches 849.