Alert archive / Alaska / Winter Storm Warnings in 2012

Winter Storm Warning 33, NWS Juneau, AK

December 14, 2012

NWS Juneau, AK issued this winter storm warning at Dec 14, 2012, 1:53 PM AKST. It was in force for 15 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 14, 2012, 1:53 PM AKST (22:53 UTC)
Expired
Dec 15, 2012, 5:00 AM AKST
In force
15 hr
Issued by
NWS Juneau, AK

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

069 
WWAK47 PAJK 142253
WSWAJK

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JUNEAU AK
153 PM AKST FRI DEC 14 2012


AKZ017>019-150700-
/X.NEW.PAJK.WS.W.0033.121214T2253Z-121215T1400Z/
CAPE FAIRWEATHER TO CAPE SUCKLING COASTAL AREA-
TAIYA INLET AND KLONDIKE HIGHWAY-HAINES BOROUGH AND LYNN CANAL-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...YAKUTAT...SKAGWAY...HAINES
153 PM AKST FRI DEC 14 2012

...WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 AM AKST SATURDAY...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN JUNEAU HAS ISSUED A WINTER STORM
WARNING FOR HEAVY SNOW...WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 AM AKST SATURDAY. 

* TIMING...FOR THE NORTHEAST GULF COAST INCLUDING YAKUTAT SNOW
  WILL BECOME MORE INTENSE THIS AFTERNOON AND REMAIN HEAVY
  OVERNIGHT. SNOW MAY DECREASE IN INTENSITY AFTER MIDNIGHT. FOR
  THE HAINES AND SKAGWAY AREAS SNOW WILL BECOME MORE INTENSE
  THROUGH LATE AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING.

* SNOW...FOR YAKUTAT...SNOWFALL AMOUNTS RANGING FROM 6 TO 10
  INCHES OF HEAVY...WET SNOW THROUGH 5 AM. FOR HAINES
  BOROUGH...SKAGWAY...AND THE KLONDIKE HIGHWAY...SNOWFALL AMOUNTS
  RANGING FROM 6 TO 11 INCHES. HIGHEST AMOUNTS IN HIGHER
  ELEVATIONS.

* OTHER IMPACTS...VISIBILITY WILL BE REDUCED TO LESS THAN 1 MILE
  AT TIMES IN HEAVY SNOWFALL ALONG THE HAINES AND KLONDIKE
  HIGHWAYS. ICE AND SNOW ON ROADWAYS WILL CREATE HAZARDOUS DRIVING
  CONDITIONS AS WELL. HEAVY WET SNOW WILL BE DIFFICULT TO MANAGE DUE
  TO HIGH WATER CONTENT.


PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A WARNING MEANS THAT A WINTER STORM IS ALREADY OCCURRING OR
IMMINENT. THIS STORM COULD POSE A THREAT TO LIFE AND PROPERTY.


THIS STATEMENT WILL BE UPDATED BY 10 PM AKST FRIDAY OR SOONER IF
CONDITIONS WARRANT.

&&

$$
2 follow-up statements
170 
WWAK47 PAJK 150546
WSWAJK

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JUNEAU AK
846 PM AKST FRI DEC 14 2012

AKZ017-150700-
/X.CAN.PAJK.WS.W.0033.000000T0000Z-121215T1400Z/
CAPE FAIRWEATHER TO CAPE SUCKLING COASTAL AREA-
INCLUDING THE CITY OF...YAKUTAT
846 PM AKST FRI DEC 14 2012

...WINTER STORM WARNING IS CANCELLED...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN JUNEAU HAS CANCELLED THE WINTER
STORM WARNING. 

THE SNOW IN YAKUTAT HAS CHANGED OVER TO RAIN AND THERE HAS NOT
BEEN ANY SIGNIFICANT ACCUMULATION IN THE LAST SEVERAL HOURS. RAIN
WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE REST OF THE NIGHT MIXING WITH SNOW AT
TIMES.

THIS WILL BE THE FINAL STATEMENT ON THIS EVENT.

$$

AKZ018-019-151400-
/X.CON.PAJK.WS.W.0033.000000T0000Z-121215T1400Z/
TAIYA INLET AND KLONDIKE HIGHWAY-HAINES BOROUGH AND LYNN CANAL-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...SKAGWAY...HAINES
846 PM AKST FRI DEC 14 2012

...WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 AM AKST
SATURDAY...

A WINTER STORM WARNING FOR HEAVY SNOW REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 5
AM AKST SATURDAY.

* TIMING...SNOW WILL CONTINUE IN SKAGWAY AND ALONG THE HAINES AND
  KLONDIKE HIGHWAYS THROUGH THE REST OF THE NIGHT EVENTUALLY
  DIMINISHING SATURDAY MORNING.

* SNOW...MODERATE SNOW HAS BEEN OBSERVED AT BOTH HAINES AND
  SKAGWAY CUSTOMS STATIONS ON THE HIGHWAYS FOR MOST OF THE EVENING
  WITH RAIN MIXING IN NEAR SEA LEVEL. STORM TOTAL SNOWFALL AMOUNTS
  RANGING FROM 6 TO 11 INCHES ARE EXPECTED BY EARLY SATURDAY
  MORNING. HIGHEST AMOUNTS IN HIGHER ELEVATIONS ALONG THE HAINES
  AND KLONDIKE HIGHWAYS.

* OTHER IMPACTS...VISIBILITY WILL BE REDUCED TO LESS THAN 1 MILE 
  AT TIMES IN HEAVY SNOWFALL ALONG THE HAINES AND KLONDIKE 
  HIGHWAYS. ICE AND SNOW ON ROADWAYS WILL CREATE HAZARDOUS 
  DRIVING CONDITIONS AS WELL. HEAVY WET SNOW WILL BE DIFFICULT 
  TO MANAGE DUE TO HIGH WATER CONTENT. 

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A WARNING MEANS THAT A WINTER STORM IS ALREADY OCCURRING OR
IMMINENT. THIS STORM COULD POSE A THREAT TO LIFE AND PROPERTY.

THIS STATEMENT WILL BE UPDATED BY 5 AM AKST SATURDAY OR SOONER IF
CONDITIONS WARRANT.

&&

$$
901 
WWAK47 PAJK 151355
WSWAJK

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JUNEAU AK
455 AM AKST SAT DEC 15 2012

AKZ018-019-151500-
/X.EXP.PAJK.WS.W.0033.000000T0000Z-121215T1400Z/
TAIYA INLET AND KLONDIKE HIGHWAY-HAINES BOROUGH AND LYNN CANAL-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...SKAGWAY...HAINES
455 AM AKST SAT DEC 15 2012

...WINTER STORM WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 5 AM AKST EARLY THIS
MORNING...

THE SNOW IN THE SKAGWAY AREA AND NORTH OF HAINES ALONG THE HAINES
HIGHWAY HAS SLACKENED OVER THE LAST HOUR OR SO. TEMPERATURES HAVE
ALSO RISEN TO NEAR FREEZING AT LOWER LEVELS OVERNIGHT AS WELL. 

THE MAIN PORTION OF THE FRONT HAS MOVED THROUGH LEAVING JUST
BANDS OF SHOWERS TO MOVE INTO THE AREA FROM THE SOUTH. SIGNIFICANT
ADDITIONAL SNOWFALLS ARE NOT EXPECTED SATURDAY MORNING SO THE
WARNING WILL BE ALLOWED TO EXPIRE AT 5 AM.

THIS IS THE FINAL STATEMENT ON THIS EVENT. 

$$

BEZENEK

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this winter storm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Juneau, AK wrote its last area forecast discussion before this winter storm warning went out at Dec 14, 6:01 AM AKST, 7 hours 52 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 14, 6:01 AM AKST, 7 hours 52 minutes before
SOUTHEAST ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JUNEAU AK
601 AM AKST FRI DEC 14 2012

.SHORT TERM...THE DEVELOPING LOW WITH THE INCOMING SYSTEM IS
EXPECTED TO DEEPEN TO NEAR 970 MB OR SLIGHTLY LOWER BY FRIDAY
EVENING AS THE LOW MOVES INTO THE NORTHEAST POCKET OF THE GULF.
THE ASSOCIATED FRONTAL BAND WILL BE MOVING ACROSS THE PANHANDLE
REGION LATE FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS. PRECIPITATION
WITH THE SYSTEM ALREADY BEGINNING TO IMPACT SOUTHEAST ALASKA FRIDAY
MORNING WITH SNOW IN THE YAKUTAT AREA AND RAIN AROUND SITKA.

TEMPERATURES ACROSS MUCH OF THE PANHANDLE FRIDAY MORNING ARE RANGING
FROM THE LOW 30S TO THE UPPER 30S. ESSENTIALLY IT IS THE DEW POINT
TEMPERATURES THAT IS DETERMINING WHETHER THE PRECIPITATION TYPE IS
SNOW OR RAIN. ALTHOUGH THE BETTER CHANCES OF SNOW WILL BE OVER
NORTHERN LYNN CANAL REGIONS.

BELIEVE THAT MOST OF THE SNOW AMOUNTS WILL REMAIN UNDER THE
ADVISORY LEVELS THROUGH A FEW OF THE AREAS THAT WILL STAY SNOW
LONGER WILL STRETCH THIS LIMIT. GUSTY WINDS WITH FRONT WILL HAVE
OUR TYPICALLY WINDY LOCATIONS ALONG THE OUTER COASTAL LOCATIONS
WILL BRIEFLY GUST TO 40 MPH OR SO FOR 3 TO 6 HOURS AS THE FRONT
MOVES THROUGH.

&&

.LONG TERM...THE FRONT MENTIONED ABOVE WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE
THROUGH ON SATURDAY. EARLY IN THE MORNING THE TEMPERATURE ALOFT
WILL BE WARM ENOUGH FOR PRECIP TO FALL AS RAIN ALONG THE COAST AND
INTO THE HOONAH AREA...AND MIXED IN JUNEAU. THEN AS THE FRONT
MOVES THROUGH TEMPERATURES WILL DECREASE AS CHANGE OVER TO SNOW
SHOWERS. THE SOUTHERN AREAS WILL STAY MAINLY RAIN...BUT WITH SOME
SNOW MIXED IN TOO. ADDITIONAL ACCUMULATIONS WILL RANGE FROM 2-4
INCHES SAT MORNING THROUGH SAT NIGHT FROM PETERSBURG NORTH.

BEHIND THE FRONT SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS WILL CONTINUE OVER THE
WEEKEND UNTIL THE LOW CENTER SHIFTS TO THE SE AND CAUSES A DRYING
TREND FROM NORTH TO SOUTH AS FLOW TURNS OFFSHORE. WINDS WILL SHIFT
FROM SOUTHEAST AHEAD OF THE FRONT TO SOUTHWEST BEHIND IT THEN
TURN OUT OF THE NORTH AS THE LOW MOVES TO THE SOUTHEAST. THE NORTH
WINDS INCREASING TO GALE FORCE OUT OF INTERIOR PASSES WILL ONCE
AGAIN BRING IN COLDER AIR...SO EXPECT ANOTHER HARD FREEZE UNDER
PARTLY TO MOSTLY CLOUDY SKIES MONDAY AND TUESDAY.

THE NEXT FRONTAL SYSTEM TO BRING PRECIP IN WILL ARRIVE TUESDAY
NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY BUT MODELS DIFFER QUITE A BIT ON PLACEMENT OF
THIS SYSTEM...SO HAVE GONE WITH HPC GUIDANCE THROUGH THE SECOND
HALF OF THE WEEK. OTHERWISE USED AN ENSEMBLE APPROACH WITH AN
EMPHASIS ON THE GFS AND THE INHERITED FORECAST.

&&

.AJK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
PUBLIC...STRONG WIND FROM 3 PM AKST THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH THIS EVENING
     FOR AKZ027.
         STRONG WIND FROM NOON AKST TODAY THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON FOR
     AKZ022-023.
MARINE...GALE WARNING FOR PKZ021-022-033-036-041>043-051-052.
         SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR PKZ011>013-031-032-034-035-053.

&&

BEZENEK/HANNON

The office that day

Everything else NWS Juneau, AK issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Dec 13, 4:00 PM AKSTGale WarningAJK24 hr
Dec 13, 4:00 PM AKSTGale WarningAJK24 hr
Dec 13, 4:00 PM AKSTGale WarningAJK24 hr
Dec 13, 4:00 PM AKSTSmall Craft AdvisoryAJK24 hr
Dec 14, 4:00 AM AKSTGale WarningAJK12 hr
Dec 14, 4:00 AM AKSTGale WarningAJK12 hr
Dec 14, 4:00 AM AKSTSmall Craft AdvisoryAJK12 hr

Nearby

Winter Storm Warnings in Alaska, 2012Every winter storm warning in 2012

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text.