Alert archive / Alaska / Gale Warnings in 2009
Gale Warning 924, NWS Anchorage, AK
NWS Anchorage, AK issued this gale warning at Dec 18, 2009, 4:00 AM AKST. It was in force for 24 hr. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.
The area
The counties it named.
The facts
- Issued
- Dec 18, 2009, 4:00 AM AKST (13:00 UTC)
- Expired
- Dec 19, 2009, 4:00 AM AKST
- In force
- 24 hr
- Issued by
- NWS Anchorage, AK
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 FZAK62 PAFC 181236 OFFALU OFFSHORE WATERS FORECAST NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ANCHORAGE AK 400 AM AKST FRI DEC 18 2009 OFFSHORE WATERS FORECAST FOR THE BERING SEA WIND FORECASTS REFLECT THE PREDOMINANT SPEED AND DIRECTION EXPECTED. SEA FORECASTS REPRESENT AN AVERAGE OF THE HIGHEST ONE-THIRD OF THE COMBINED WIND WAVE AND SWELL HEIGHT. PKZ499-190300- 400 AM AKST FRI DEC 18 2009 .SYNOPSIS FOR CENTRAL BERING SEA... A 950 MB LOW NEAR 51N 176E WILL MOVE TO NEAR 54N 176E AT 964 MB SAT MORNING...THEN MOVE TO 52N 178E AT 962 MB SAT NIGHT. A 979 MB LOW FORMS NEAR 49N 179W FRI NIGHT AND MOVES TO NEAR 57N 176W AT 959 MB LATE SAT NIGHT. $$ PKZ411-190300- BERING SEA OFFSHORE WEST OF 180 AND EAST OF THE INTERNATIONAL DATELINE 400 AM AKST FRI DEC 18 2009 ...STORM WARNING THROUGH SATURDAY... .TODAY...E WIND 40 TO 55 KT. SEAS 13 TO 26 FT. HIGHEST SEAS S. RAIN. .TONIGHT...E WIND 40 TO 55 KT. SEAS 17 TO 27 FT. SNOW AND RAIN. FREEZING SPRAY. .SAT...E WIND 35 TO 50 KT. SEAS 17 TO 25 FT. SNOW AND RAIN. FREEZING SPRAY. .SAT NIGHT...N WIND 35 TO 45 KT. SEAS 17 TO 22 FT. .SUN...N WIND 50 KT. SEAS 19 FT. .MON...NE TO NW WIND 40 KT. SEAS 17 FT. .TUE...SE WIND 35 KT. SEAS 16 FT. $$ PKZ412-190300- BERING SEA OFFSHORE 171W TO 180 AND NORTH OF 56N 400 AM AKST FRI DEC 18 2009 ...GALE WARNING THROUGH SATURDAY... ...HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY WARNING TONIGHT AND SATURDAY... .TODAY...E WIND 30 TO 45 KT. SEAS 7 TO 15 FT. HIGHEST WINDS AND SEAS S AND W. SNOW AND RAIN. FREEZING SPRAY. .TONIGHT...NE WIND 30 TO 45 KT. SEAS 11 TO 20 FT. HIGHEST WINDS AND SEAS W. HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY N. .SAT...NE WIND 25 TO 40 KT...EXCEPT BECOMING SE 25 KT IN THE AFTERNOON S AND E. SEAS 13 TO 21 FT. HIGHEST SEAS W. SNOW AND RAIN. HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY N. .SAT NIGHT...SE TO NE WIND 30 TO 45 KT. SEAS 17 FT. .SUN...SE WIND 40 KT. SEAS 17 FT. .MON...E WIND 50 KT. SEAS 18 FT. .TUE...SE WIND 40 KT. SEAS 17 FT. $$ PKZ413-190300- BERING SEA OFFSHORE 171W TO 180 AND SOUTH OF 56N 400 AM AKST FRI DEC 18 2009 ...GALE WARNING THROUGH TONIGHT... .TODAY...S TO E WIND 25 TO 45 KT. SEAS 11 TO 20 FT. HIGHEST WINDS AND SEAS W. RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS. .TONIGHT...S TO E WIND 20 TO 35 KT. SEAS 13 TO 21 FT. HIGHEST SEAS W. RAIN AND SNOW. .SAT...SE TO SW WIND 20 TO 30 KT BECOMING W BY LATE AFTERNOON. SEAS 13 TO 21 FT. RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS. .SAT NIGHT...SW WIND 30 TO 40 KT. SEAS 16 FT. .SUN...S WIND 35 KT. SEAS 14 FT. .MON...N WIND 45 KT. SEAS 18 FT. .TUE...SW WIND 40 KT. SEAS 18 FT. $$ PKZ414-190300- BERING SEA OFFSHORE EAST OF 171W 400 AM AKST FRI DEC 18 2009 ...GALE WARNING THROUGH SATURDAY... .TODAY...S OF 57 N...SE WIND 25 TO 35 KT. N OF 57N...SW WIND 15 TO 25 KT BECOMING E IN THE AFTERNOON. SEAS 6 TO 11 FT. HIGHEST SEAS S AND W. SNOW AND RAIN SHOWERS. FREEZING SPRAY. .TONIGHT...E WIND 35 KT...EXCEPT BECOMING SW 20 TO 30 KT S OF 57N. SEAS 7 TO 13 FT. HIGHEST SEAS S AND W. SNOW AND RAIN SHOWERS. FREEZING SPRAY. .SAT...SE WIND 25 KT...EXCEPT INCREASING TO 35 KT IN THE AFTERNOON S OF 56N. SEAS 9 TO 15 FT. HIGHEST SEAS S AND W. RAIN AND SNOW. FREEZING SPRAY. .SAT NIGHT...S WIND 25 TO 35 KT. SEAS 15 FT. .SUN...SE WIND 45 KT. SEAS 16 FT. .MON...E WIND 50 KT. SEAS 20 FT. .TUE...S WIND 50 KT. SEAS 17 FT. $$
2 follow-up statements
000 FZAK62 PAFC 190059 OFFALU OFFSHORE WATERS FORECAST NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ANCHORAGE AK 400 PM AKST FRI DEC 18 2009 OFFSHORE WATERS FORECAST FOR THE BERING SEA WIND FORECASTS REFLECT THE PREDOMINANT SPEED AND DIRECTION EXPECTED. SEA FORECASTS REPRESENT AN AVERAGE OF THE HIGHEST ONE-THIRD OF THE COMBINED WIND WAVE AND SWELL HEIGHT. PKZ499-191500- 400 PM AKST FRI DEC 18 2009 .SYNOPSIS FOR CENTRAL BERING SEA... A 962 MB LOW NEAR 53N 176E WILL REMAIN NEARLY STATIONARY OVER THE WESTERN ALEUTIANS WITH LITTLE CHANGE IN PRESSURE THROUGH SUNDAY. A 985 MB LOW NEAR 45N 173E WILL STRENGTHEN TO 964 MB NEAR 57N 173W SAT NIGHT THEN MOVE TO 59N 176W SUN AFTERNOON. $$ PKZ411-191500- BERING SEA OFFSHORE WEST OF 180 AND EAST OF THE INTERNATIONAL DATELINE 400 PM AKST FRI DEC 18 2009 ...STORM WARNING THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT... .TONIGHT...E WIND 45 TO 55 KT. SEAS 19 TO 25 FT. SNOW AND RAIN. FREEZING SPRAY NORTH OF 56N. .SAT...E WIND 40 TO 50 KT. SEAS 19 TO 25 FT. SNOW AND RAIN. FREEZING SPRAY NORTH OF 56N. .SAT NIGHT...NE WIND 40 TO 50 KT. SEAS 17 TO 23 FT. SNOW AND RAIN. FREEZING SPRAY NORTH OF 56N. .SUN THROUGH MON...N WIND 40 KT. SEAS 17 FT. .TUE AND WED...SE WIND 30 KT. SEAS 14 FT. $$ PKZ412-191500- BERING SEA OFFSHORE 171W TO 180 AND NORTH OF 56N 400 PM AKST FRI DEC 18 2009 ...GALE WARNING THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT... ...HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY WARNING TONIGHT... .TONIGHT...NE WIND 30 TO 40 KT. SEAS 13 TO 19 FT. SNOW. HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY. .SAT...E WIND 30 TO 40 KT. SEAS 15 TO 21 FT. SNOW. FREEZING SPRAY IN THE MORNING. .SAT NIGHT...SE WIND 40 KT. SEAS 15 TO 21 FT. SNOW AND RAIN. .SUN...SE WIND 30 KT. SEAS 15 FT. .SUN NIGHT...NE WIND 45 KT. SEAS 14 FT. .MON...E WIND 40 KT. SEAS 15 FT. .TUE AND WED...SE WIND 30 KT. SEAS 14 FT. $$ PKZ413-191500- BERING SEA OFFSHORE 171W TO 180 AND SOUTH OF 56N 400 PM AKST FRI DEC 18 2009 ...GALE WARNING TONIGHT AND SATURDAY NIGHT... .TONIGHT...S WIND 25 TO 35 KT. SEAS 16 TO 22 FT. RAIN AND SNOW. .SAT...S WIND 20 TO 30 KT. SEAS 14 TO 20 FT. RAIN AND SNOW. .SAT NIGHT...SW WIND 25 TO 35 KT. SEAS 14 TO 20 FT. SNOW AND RAIN. .SUN...SW WIND 25 KT. SEAS 12 FT. .SUN NIGHT...N WIND 35 KT. SEAS 11 FT. .MON...NW WIND 40 KT. SEAS 16 FT. .TUE...SW WIND 35 KT. SEAS 16 FT. .WED...SE WIND 30 KT. SEAS 13 FT. $$ PKZ414-191500- BERING SEA OFFSHORE EAST OF 171W 400 PM AKST FRI DEC 18 2009 ...GALE WARNING THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT... .TONIGHT...E WIND 25 TO 35 KT. SEAS 9 TO 15 FT. SNOW AND RAIN SHOWERS. FREEZING SPRAY NORTH OF 56N. .SAT...SE WIND 25 TO 35 KT. SEAS 12 TO 18 FT. RAIN AND SNOW. .SAT NIGHT...S WIND 35 KT. SEAS 12 TO 18 FT. RAIN AND SNOW. .SUN...SE WIND 30 KT. SEAS 16 FT. .SUN NIGHT AND MON...SE WIND 45 KT. SEAS 17 FT. .TUE...SE WIND 50 KT. SEAS 19 FT. .WED...E WIND 40 KT. SEAS 15 FT. $$
000 FZAK62 PAFC 191248 OFFALU OFFSHORE WATERS FORECAST NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ANCHORAGE AK 400 AM AKST SAT DEC 19 2009 OFFSHORE WATERS FORECAST FOR THE BERING SEA WIND FORECASTS REFLECT THE PREDOMINANT SPEED AND DIRECTION EXPECTED. SEA FORECASTS REPRESENT AN AVERAGE OF THE HIGHEST ONE-THIRD OF THE COMBINED WIND WAVE AND SWELL HEIGHT. PKZ499-200300- 400 AM AKST SAT DEC 19 2009 .SYNOPSIS FOR CENTRAL BERING SEA... A 965 MB LOW NEAR 53N 174E WILL MOVE TO 52N 176E WITH LITTLE CHANGE IN STRENGTH SUNDAY MORNING...THEN MOVE TO 53N 176W AT 971 MB MONDAY MORNING. A 973 MB LOW NEAR 51N 177W WILL MOVE TO 56N 173W AT 966 MB SATURDAY EVENING...THEN MOVE TO NEAR 58N 174W AT 974 MB SUNDAY AFTERNOON. A 970 MB LOW WILL MOVE TO 54N 169W MONDAY MORNING. $$ PKZ411-200300- BERING SEA OFFSHORE WEST OF 180 AND EAST OF THE INTERNATIONAL DATELINE 400 AM AKST SAT DEC 19 2009 ...STORM WARNING TODAY... .TODAY...E WIND 40 TO 50 KT. SEAS 19 TO 25 FT. SNOW AND RAIN. FREEZING SPRAY NORTH OF 56N. .TONIGHT...NE WIND 45 KT DIMINISHING TO 35 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. SEAS 18 TO 22 FT. SNOW AND RAIN SHOWERS. FREEZING SPRAY NORTH OF 56N. .SUN...NE WIND 30 KT. SEAS 17 FT. SNOW SHOWERS AND RAIN. FREEZING SPRAY. .SUN NIGHT...N WIND 30 KT. SEAS 15 FT. .MON...NW WIND 20 KT. SEAS 12 FT. .TUE...SW WIND 20 KT. SEAS 8 FT. .WED...NE WIND 25 KT. SEAS 10 FT. $$ PKZ412-200300- BERING SEA OFFSHORE 171W TO 180 AND NORTH OF 56N 400 AM AKST SAT DEC 19 2009 ...GALE WARNING THROUGH TONIGHT... .TODAY...E WIND 40 KT. SEAS 15 TO 19 FT. SNOW AND RAIN. FREEZING SPRAY. .TONIGHT...NE WIND 40 KT...EXCEPT BECOMING VARIABLE 20 KT EAST OF 175W DURING THE EVENING. SEAS 14 TO 18 FT. SNOW AND RAIN SHOWERS. FREEZING SPRAY. .SUN...N WIND 25 KT. SEAS 13 FT. SNOW SHOWERS. FREEZING SPRAY. .SUN NIGHT...N WIND 25 KT. SEAS 12 FT. .MON...NW WIND 30 KT. SEAS 10 FT. .TUE...S WIND 20 KT. SEAS 9 FT. .WED...NE WIND 25 KT. SEAS 7 FT. $$ PKZ413-200300- BERING SEA OFFSHORE 171W TO 180 AND SOUTH OF 56N 400 AM AKST SAT DEC 19 2009 ...GALE WARNING TONIGHT... .TODAY...E WIND 30 KT. SEAS 18 FT. RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS. .TONIGHT...W WIND 40 KT...EXCEPT BECOMING VARIABLE 20 KT WEST OF 175W DURING THE EVENING. SEAS 16 FT. RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS. .SUN...S WIND 20 KT. SEAS 13 FT. RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS. .SUN NIGHT...NW WIND 15 KT. SEAS 11 FT. .MON...NW WIND 20 KT. SEAS 10 FT. .TUE...S WIND 15 KT. SEAS 9 FT. .WED...NE WIND 25 KT. SEAS 8 FT. $$ PKZ414-200300- BERING SEA OFFSHORE EAST OF 171W 400 AM AKST SAT DEC 19 2009 ...STORM WARNING TONIGHT... .TODAY...S WIND 30 KT BECOMING SE 40 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. SEAS 16 FT. SNOW AND RAIN SHOWERS. FREEZING SPRAY. .TONIGHT...S WIND 50 KT DIMINISHING TO 40 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. SEAS 19 FT. RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS. .SUN...S WIND 25 KT. SEAS 16 FT. .SUN NIGHT...NE WIND 35 KT. SEAS 13 FT. .MON...SW WIND 40 KT. SEAS 16 FT. .TUE...E WIND 20 KT. SEAS 11 FT. .WED...NE WIND 20 KT. SEAS 6 FT. $$
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before this gale warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Anchorage, AK wrote its last area forecast discussion before this gale warning went out at Dec 17, 3:00 PM AKST, 13 hours earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Dec 17, 3:00 PM AKST, 13 hours before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION SOUTHCENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST ALASKA 300 PM AKST THU DEC 17 2009 .MODEL DISCUSSION...THE NAM MODEL WAS BY FAR THE BEST FOR THE LAST SNOWFALL AROUND SOUTH CENTRAL ESPECIALLY IN THE COOK INLET REGION WHERE IT WAS THE ONLY MAJOR MODEL TO DETECT THAT MESO LOW AS WELL AS HAVING THE SHORT WAVE THAT DROPPED MORE SNOW OVER ANCHORAGE AND THE MAT-SU VALLEY LAST NIGHT. THE NAM SHOULD REMAIN THE BEST ONE FOR THE NEXT FEW DAYS IN THE SOUTH CENTRAL REGION AND AROUND THE NORTHERN GULF. ALL THE MODELS ARE DOING FINE OUT WEST IN THE SHORT TERM BUT THE LARGE AND COMPLEX LOW THAT IS MOVING INTO THE WESTERN ALEUTIANS IS A MESS WITH ALL THE MODELS. THE NAM IS TOO FAR WEST INITIALLY AND THE ECMWF FAILS TO DEVELOP THE SECONDARY LOW THAT WILL MOVE INTO THE CENTRAL ALEUTIANS FRI NIGHT. THE GFS IS PROBABLY THE BEST BET AT THIS TIME. WHILE IT HAS NOT BEEN TERRIBLY STABLE IN RUN TO RUN CONSISTENCY IT HAS SETTLED DOWN THE LAST TWO RUNS AND LOOKS TO BE THE BEST MODEL TO START WITH. .ANALYSIS AND UPPER LEVELS...THE COLD UPPER LEVEL LOW IS CENTERED OVER THE LOWER KUSKOKWIM VALLEY THIS AFTERNOON. THIS IS BRINGING DUE SOUTH UPPER LEVEL FLOW TO PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND AND EASTWARD WHILE COLD NORTH TO NORTHWEST FLOW REMAINS OVER SOUTHWEST ALASKA. AT THE SURFACE THE LOW THAT WAS IN PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND HAS BECOME VERY DIFFUSE WITH AN APPARENT CENTER SOUTHEAST OF SEAWARD AND THE MESO LOW REMAINING IN COOK INLET. THE MESO LOW IN COOK INLET WILL REMAIN AND SLOWLY DISSIPATE THROUGH FRIDAY. A STRONG JET STREAM IS REMAINING WELL SOUTH OF THE AREA BUT IS FEEDING THE LOW THAT IS MOVING INTO THE WESTERN ALEUTIANS. IT WILL ALSO CAUSE A TRIPLE POINT LOW TO DEVELOP AND MOVE INTO THE CENTRAL ALEUTIANS ON SATURDAY...WHICH WILL BECOME THE DOMINANT LOW AND MAIN WEATHER FEATURE BY THEN. .SHORT TERM FORECAST...THE SOUTHWEST ALASKA REGION WILL REMAIN COLD AND BREEZY WHILE THAT VERY COLD AIR SPILLS INTO SOUTH CENTRAL ALASKA. SNOWFALL SHOULD BE TAPERING OFF OVER SOUTH CENTRAL ALASKA EXCEPT FOR THE COPPER RIVER BASIN WHICH WILL STILL SEE SOME OVER RUNNING OVERNIGHT. SNOW BANDS SIMILAR TO LAKE EFFECT SNOW CAN BE SEEN CIRCULATING INTO THE MESO LOW IN COOK INLET WHICH HAS BECOME A MORE SIGNIFICANT FEATURE THAN NORMAL. .LONG TERM FORECAST...AS THE LOW IN THE CENTRAL ALEUTIANS THIS WEEKEND MOVES INTO THE BERING SEA AN UPPER LEVEL RIDGE WILL BEGIN TO BUILD OVER SOUTH CENTRAL ALASKA AND EASTWARD. THIS WILL RESULT IN WIDESPREAD SOUTHERLY WINDS AND A RETURN TO WARMER TEMPERATURES ACROSS THE SOUTHERN PART OF THE STATE. THE WEATHER WILL REMAIN STORMY IN THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS THROUGH THE WEEKEND AS A SERIES OF LOWS PROGRESS THROUGH THE REGION. BY EARLY NEXT WEEK A CHINOOK IS POSSIBLE IN SOUTH CENTRAL ALASKA. .AER/ALU...WATCH/WARNING SUMMARY PUBLIC...NONE. MARINE...GALE 125 130 132 150 155 170 172 185 STORM 175 176 HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY 121 129 130 132 138 140 141 150 155 160 180 185 FIRE WEATHER...NONE. DEC 09
The office that day
Everything else NWS Anchorage, AK issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 17, 3:59 PM AKST | Winter Weather Advisory | AFC | 19 hr | |
| Dec 17, 4:00 PM AKST | Small Craft Advisory | AFC | 36 hr | |
| Dec 17, 4:00 PM AKST | Storm Warning | AFC | 24 hr | |
| Dec 17, 4:50 PM AKST | Gale Warning | AFC | 11 hr | |
| Dec 18, 4:00 AM AKST | Gale Warning | AFC | 48 hr | |
| Dec 18, 4:00 AM AKST | Gale Warning | AFC | 3 days | |
| Dec 18, 4:00 AM AKST | Small Craft Advisory | AFC | 24 hr | |
| Dec 18, 4:00 AM AKST | Heavy Freezing Spray Warning | AFC | 24 hr |
Nearby
Sources
The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text.