Daily Weather Update from FOX Weather: Tropics awaken in Atlantic as wildfires and haze dominate parts of US

Top weather news for Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025: Tropical Storm Dexter churns up the seas along the East Coast as the NHC monitors two areas in the Atlantic for topical development. Meanwhile, wildfire smoke from Canada infiltrates the U.S. as California's wildfire season kicks into high gear.

Welcome to the Daily Weather Update from FOX Weather. It's Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025. Start your day with everything you need to know about today's weather. You can also get a quick briefing of national, regional and local weather whenever you like with the FOX Weather Update podcast.

2 areas in Atlantic eyed for possible tropical development as Tropical Storm Dexter spins away from US

Tropical Storm Dexter has started to weaken after forming off the East Coast in the Atlantic Ocean on Sunday night, but forecasters say it could restrengthen in the coming days as it continues to move away from the U.S.

However, impacts from the fast-moving storm will be felt along the coast. People from New England southward to South Florida have flocked to beaches to catch some rays and enjoy some time in the water, but dangers lurk below the surface.

Rip currents will pose a serious risk to beachgoers all along the East Coast.

As Dexter moves away from the U.S. East Coast, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) is also tracking two areas to watch for tropical development in the Atlantic Ocean, one of which could potentially impact the southeastern U.S. after the region has already endured several days of heavy rain and flash flooding since last Friday.

This system has a low chance of development over the next seven days, but it could potentially have impacts on the Carolinas, Georgia and Florida.

Meanwhile, the NHC is tracking another disturbance that has growing odds for development in the tropical Atlantic between Africa and the Caribbean islands, known as the Main Development Region.

Some gradual development is possible, and a tropical depression could form late this week or over the weekend as the system moves generally west-northwestward across the central tropical or subtropical Atlantic.

Wildfire smoke leads to air quality issues for 81 million from Midwest to Northeast

Air quality concerns continue to expand from the Upper Midwest through the Great Lakes region and into the Northeast and New England as wildfire smoke from Canada drifts southward into the U.S.

The thick plumes of smoke in Canada are being driven southward into the U.S. by northerly winds on the backside of an area of high pressure.

The FOX Forecast Center said the wildfire smoke has settled closer to the surface, resulting in widespread reductions in air quality.

California's Gifford Fire consumes more than 72,000 acres as dry conditions challenge firefighters

The largest wildfire currently burning in California grew to more than 72,000 acres. The Gifford Fire burning in Los Padres National Forest in Southern California prompted additional evacuations across two counties on Monday evening, with little relief from dangerous fire weather conditions in sight.

Officials from Los Padres National Forest expect the wildfire to continue to grow as dry conditions persist, with no rain in the forecast for the next week. The flames are threatening more than 870 buildings.

See it: Russian volcano awakens for first time in centuries days after historic magnitude 8.8 earthquake

A volcano that was dormant for centuries roared back to life Sunday on Russia's far eastern coast, the latest fallout from last week's historic magnitude 8.8 earthquake in that same region.

The Krasheninnikov volcano last erupted around 1550, according to the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Project.

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